


Stay With Me

by SongAngel



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Auror Partners, Bad Puns, Bottom Draco Malfoy, Creature Fic, Eggpreg, Eggpreg? What kind of tag is that?, Fluff and Smut, Humor, It's completely ridiculous, M/M, Romance, Ron Weasley is a Good Friend, Top Harry Potter, Violence, so many feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2019-04-19 21:50:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 40,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14246466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SongAngel/pseuds/SongAngel
Summary: Harry and Draco seem to be the unluckiest pair of Aurors in Magical Law Enforcement. Their misfortune lands them at the heart of a bizarre case that changes their lives in a way that neither could anticipate.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story is a little weird. You've been warned. That being said, it's a lot of fun and super sweet.

The war against Voldemort had ended, and the Wizarding World was better for it. But recovery was easier for some than others. Draco Malfoy had been on the losing side, though it hadn't exactly been by choice. It had been a relief when Harry Potter had finished the Dark Lord off.

Draco had worked hard to redeem his tarnished reputation. Charges against him had been dropped thanks to Harry testifying on his behalf, and so Draco had been allowed to join the Aurors. Most of the other Aurors didn't trust him and were reluctant to work with him. But, Harry had given him a chance.

Harry Potter had known from the beginning that being partnered with Draco Malfoy would cause chaos. But he never could've anticipated the madness that seemed to follow them relentlessly. Though, to be fair, their problems seemed to cause problems for the other Aurors just as often.

At that moment, Harry was incapable of pondering his rotten luck. Because Harry was a toddler and so was his blond partner.

"Of course it had to be Harry and Malfoy," Ron grumbled, shaking his head at the two year olds at his feet.

Draco's lips were pulled into a little pout as he eyed Ron with wide, watery gray eyes. His chubby little fingers were clutching at his office chair. His round cheeks were pink and Ron was horrified by the strange urge to pinch them lightly.

Harry was a little more slim then Draco, and he seemed much more timid. He sat on the floor with one thumb in his mouth while his green eyes darted warily between Ron and Kingsley. Both boys were still wearing their auror robes, though they'd been shrunk to fit on smaller bodies.

Harry and Draco had been part of a team of aurors investigating a case regarding some missing wizards and witches. The victims had been turned into infants by a crazed witch with an unhealthy fondness for children. She'd splashed the potion on Harry and Draco before they could get her restrained. The de-aging process had taken an hour, but they'd at least made it back to the DMLE quickly before passing out. Ron had spotted them and pulled them into their office to avoid nosy onlookers. He had then watched over them as they had shrunk and the years were stripped away.

"The antidote will take a few hours to brew," Ron sighed. "What do we do until it's finished?"

"We wait," Kingsley replied tiredly. "Could I persuade you to care of them until their condition can be reversed?" he asked.

"I'll do my best," Ron replied, though he was sure that he'd prefer snogging the giant squid over babysitting Malfoy. He walked over to Harry and kneeled, reaching for his friend.

Harry whimpered and shifted away from Ron's hands. Tears filled his eyes and his lip wobbled with the threat of heart breaking sobs. Ron withdrew slightly, frowning in concern. If Harry was two years old, he would have memories of being under the care of the Dursleys. Had they mistreated him so early in life? After a moment, Ron decided that he wasn't particularly surprised. He should have guessed that their depravity wouldn't draw the line at a baby.

"It's alright Harry," Ron said softly, smiling at the scared little boy. "I won't hurt you." He moved slowly and cautiously, reaching out until he could gently stroke the soft skin of Harry's cheek. Harry remained still, staring at Ron. When Ron reached out to pick him up, he flinched slightly but made no other protest.

Ron stood up, balancing Harry on his hip, to move around Harry's desk and grab a biscuit from the tin that Harry kept in his office. Harry accepted the biscuit, the beginning of a smile tugging his lips upward.

"I could kill the Dursleys," Ron said, careful to keep the harshness out of his tone. "How can someone neglect him? Look at him!" he demanded, gazing at the little boy in his arms. Harry stuck his little tongue out to give the biscuit a lick before nibbling on it.

"It can't be helped now," Kingsley said reasonably. "Just take advantage of the opportunity to make up for some of the neglect."

The suggestion seemed to cheer Ron up a bit. He nodded and watched as Harry ate his biscuit and made soft humming noises in approval of the sweetness. Ron glanced over to Draco to see the blond smacking his lips and eyeing Harry's biscuit. Ron wasn't fond of Malfoy, but he wouldn't be mean to a toddler. "Do want a biscuit Malfoy?" he asked.

Draco glanced away from the biscuit to stare up at Ron uncertainly. "I Daco," he said.

Okay, that was cute.

"Alright, would like a biscuit Draco?" Ron amended. He grinned when Draco nodded eagerly, holding out one tiny hand expectantly. Ron complied, smiling when Draco muttered something that was probably supposed to be a thank you.

Draco ate his biscuit happily, ignoring everyone in the room for a moment. When he was done, he looked up his see Harry finishing up his snack as well. "Dat," Draco said, pointing at Harry.

"This is Harry," Ron said, smiling softly as Harry began sucking his thumb again.

"Habby?" Draco questioned. He held his arms out, making grabby hands toward Harry. Harry shifted nervously. Draco sat down and patted the floor with his palm. "Sit!" he chirped.

Ron carefully placed Harry back on the floor, settling himself on the carpet as well. Draco smiled and promptly began to babble at Harry. Ron didn't understand any of it and thought that maybe it was mostly sounds of excitement. Harry seemed bewildered and slowly pulled his thumb out of his mouth. Tears spilled over his cheeks and he sniffled pitifully.

Before Ron could scoop Harry up again, Draco wiggled his way closer to Harry and patted Harry's leg. "'Kay," Draco said softly. He reached up to pet Harry's hair earning a watery smile from Harry. "Habby!" Draco cheered, clapping his hands.

Harry giggled.

A knock at the door drew their attention and Kingsley opened to reveal Pansy Parkinson. "What has Potter done to Draco?" she demanded loudly.

Harry cringed at the angry voice, whimpering softly. Draco glared at the newcomer.

"Ms. Parkinson," Kingsley growled. "Calm yourself."

"It's alright," Ron told the toddlers. "She won't hurt you." He smiled as Harry relaxed slightly and allowed Draco to continue patting his leg. Ron reached out to Draco and tickled Draco's tummy, sending the boy into a fit of giggles. Then Ron reached for Harry, pausing when Harry covered his tummy with his hands warily. Ron moved back to Draco, chuckling when the blond laughed, squirmed and fell over. Draco sat back up excitedly. Ron looked at Harry again, delighted when the boy moved his hands, shyly offering his tummy for tickles.

Harry's burst of laughter warmed Ron's heart. Childish giggles filled the office and Draco squealed in delight when Ron's sneaky fingers gently prodded against his neck.

"That's... adorable," Pansy admitted, slipping closer to the trio on the floor. She sat down in a chair next to Draco and smiled down at him. "Hello Draco," she greeted him.

"Hello," Draco responded, the L sound rolling off his tongue exaggeratedly. Ron chuckled at the sound, earning a dimpled grin from the blond.

"I suppose this can't be entirely Potter's fault," Pansy admitted.

"It's not," Ron retorted. "They were on a mission. They stayed together and the mad bint threw potion at them. Harry had no control over it. But they did protect the others on the team."

"That just means that Potter's rotten luck is to blame rather than his stupidity," Pansy grumbled. Despite her words, she reached out and stroked Harry's hair gently. "What a sweet boy," she cooed. She shifted her gaze to Draco. "Adorable."

Ron shook his head. He wouldn't bother trying to understand Pansy. Regardless of her accusations of Harry's stupidity, she was oddly fond of Harry. Ron could only assume that she was concerned for his well-being in her own way.

Pansy was one of Draco's closest friends. So, naturally, when Draco was made Harry's auror partner, Pansy felt that she needed to be supportive. At first she suspected that Harry was going to sabotage or humilate Draco, but Harry had won her over with surprising ease. Draco had been shocked and a little annoyed about that.

Kingsley slipped away to hold back the reporters that were, no doubt, harassing his poor secretary for information. If Pansy had been aware of an incident, then there was sure to be a herd of rabid reporters waiting to snap up all the details they could find.

Ron and Pansy passed the time by playing with the two year old aurors. Draco loved the attention and babbled happily at them. Harry was all shy smiles and sweet snuggles.

"The Chosen One is a cuddler," Pansy chuckled finally. "I probably should have known that."

"It's probably because of his rubbish relatives," Ron grumbled. "He was affection starved. Even this young," he added sadly. "He's pretty affectionate when he's dating, though he hasn't done much of that lately."

"Hard to imagine that the savior of the wizarding world came from such humble beginnings," Pansy murmured, handing each of the boys another biscuit. "That someone so important and powerful was neglected and despised by his own family. Harry's a good boy," she added sweetly, pleased that it made Harry grin at her.

"Daco good boy?" Draco chimed in eagerly.

"Yes," Ron chuckled. He'd never admit it out loud, but little Draco was absolutely adorable.

"Good boy," Harry said softly.

Draco let out an excited squeal and tackled Harry with a hug. "Good boy Habby!" he jabbered against Harry's robes.

Ron smiled as watched the two little boys together. It was hard to believe that they'd been such bitter rivals in school. Little Draco was probably quite spoilt, but he seemed to have a sweet enough disposition. Adult Draco was rather less pleasant in Ron's opinion.

There was a sharp knock on the door before it was thrown open. In stepped Hermione Granger, looking flustered. "How are they?" she asked.

"Young," Ron responded with a grin. Pansy snorted and rolled her eyes.

Hermione sighed heavily, shaking her head. She was a healer at Saint Mungos. Upon hearing about the incident, she'd retrieved a sample of the potion and immediately started brewing an antidote. It would have caused too much of an uproar to bring the boys to the hospital, so she'd gone to them instead. Her colleagues were taking care of the other victims. "They need to drink this," she said seriously, holding up two baby bottles containing a pale blue potion. "We'll have to do it one at a time so I can monitor them."

"Are you sure it'll work?" Pansy asked uncertainly.

"Of course," Hermione replied dismissively. "But, I prefer to be cautious."

"Do Draco first," Pansy said. "He'll be insufferable if he finds out that we left him as a toddler for longer than necessary."

Hermine shrugged and handed one of the bottles to Pansy. Hermione waited patiently while Draco was coaxed into drinking the potion. Ron distracted Harry by picking him up and making faces.

Once Draco had finished drinking, Hermione transfigured a quill into a cot and placed the little boy on it. He drifted off to sleep, curled under the blanket Hermione placed over him.

The antidote worked more quickly than the original potion. After ten minutes, Draco had returned to his appropriate size and age. His robes had been charmed to grow with him. Finding himself naked would not have gone over well.

Draco stretched and sat up, wincing as his head throbbed. It was if all of his memories had suddenly flooded into his mind, leaving him shaken and nauseous. He lifted his trembling hands and inspected them anxiously. He turned to Pansy expectantly.

"Good as new," Pansy assured him.

"Where's Potter?" Drano demanded, standing up slowly. His eyes widened when he saw Harry sitting in Ron's lap.

"Where Daco?" Harry asked quietly, eyeing Draco uncertainly.

"This is Draco," Pansy said, patting Draco's arm. She giggled when Harry gave her a disbelieving look.

Draco stepped closer, taking in the sight of his partner. Little Harry was unmistakable as his partner. Draco would recognize those vibrant green eyes anywhere. Harry looked to be underfed but otherwise healthy. To Draco's surprise, Harry lifted his arms toward him, looking expectant but nervous. Draco lifted the child carefully, ignoring the odd sound that Pansy emitted. "I can't believe how small he is," Draco muttered.

Hermione handed Harry the second bottle. They all watched as he drank the potion from the safety of Draco's arms. Once he was finished, Hermione motioned toward the cot and Draco carefully layed the little boy down.

"Daco," Harry mumbled sleepily, maintaining a firm grip on Draco's sleeve.

Draco sighed, moving to pull Harry's little hand away. He stilled when Pansy hissed at him. "Let that little darling hold on to you if he likes," she commanded in a whisper. "Just look at that sweet face."

Draco sighed, reluctantly shifting his hand closer to Harry. Harry nuzzled against the fabric sleepily. Draco's lips twitched upward. Hermione noticed but didn't comment.

A few minutes later, Harry woke up back to normal. He opened his eyes and blushed when he realized that he was clutching his partner's sleeve. Harry released his hold in favor of rubbing at his temples with a groan. "That was... intense," he muttered softly.

"Indeed," Draco agreed tiredly.

Pansy sighed and shook her head. "You two have wretched luck," she commented. "You could have been killed."

"We don't usually have potions being tossed at us," Draco retorted, gratefully accepting a pain potion from Hermione. "We don't generally sustain serious injuries and we are excellent at what we do," he said, holding up his vial toward Harry, as if in a toast. Harry returned the gesture with his own pain potion.

Hermione watched as the two men swallowed their potions, grimacing only slightly at the taste. "All better now?" she asked after a few moments, allowing time for the potion to work. "Come to me straight away if you feel the least bit poorly."

Harry waved her off with a tired smile, not wanting her to fuss over him. After a moment, she nodded and kissed his forehead, bidding the others to have a good afternoon. Pansy left soon after, apparently convinced that they wouldn't do anything life-threatening for the rest of the day. Ron returned to his own office, casting an oddly wistful look at Harry over his shoulder as he went.

Harry sighed, returning to his desk to begin his paperwork. His memory of his brief time as a toddler was quite hazy. It was rather muddled with his memory of the Dursleys and the sudden return of his other memories. The dizziness still hadn't subsided and he wondered briefly if he was going to be sick.

"I think we're done for the day," Draco said suddenly, his face even more pale than usual. "I have no intention of vomiting in this office."

"Think we should see Hermione?" Harry asked reluctantly. It seemed responsible to at least ask, though Harry was going to do everything in his power to avoid the hospital.

"Not if I can help it," Draco muttered. "Let's just see if Robards will let us leave early. We did suffer quite an ordeal," he reasoned.

They stepped out into the hallway together and made their way toward the head auror's office. They hadn't made it very far before Ron was calling out to them. "I was watching for you two," he explained, eyeing them critically. "You both look ill."

"Thank you ever so," Draco retorted sarcastically.

"Please don't tell Hermione," Harry pleaded. "We just want to leave. I promise that I'll rest. I don't want to be mothered right now."

Ron folded his arms over his chest, frowning in thought. He looked between Harry and Draco. "I can't, in good conscience, let either of you go off alone," he said. He smiled slightly at their pouting expressions. "What if you two just stayed together? Go to Harry's house and watch the telly while you get some rest. I'll check on you throughout the day. If one of you runs off, I swear I'll track you down and take you straight to Hermione," he added sternly.

Harry nodded quickly while Draco huffed impatiently. Satisfied, Ron ducked into Robards office for a moment. When he returned, he looked satisfied. "Right. You two are free to go," Ron said. "You should have Kreacher take you. I can't imagine that using the floo or apparating would be pleasant."

Harry did as Ron suggested, flinching only slightly when the ancient, and slightly mad, house elf appeared. "Master Potter, young Master Malfoy," the old elf croaked. He shot Ron a suspicious look. "Blood traitor."

"Don't call him that," Harry said sharply. He rolled his eyes when Kreacher simply turned his back and proceeded to ignore Ron's presence entirely. "Please take Malfoy and myself to my home." He shot Room an apologetic look. "We'll stay put."

Ron nodded his acceptance and offered a short wave before the elf grabbed hold of Harry and Draco, whisking them away.

Draco collapsed onto Harry's couch the moment the elf let go of him. Harry sat down next to him, yawning tiredly. Harry switched on the television, flipping through the channels until he found something interesting to watch. Setting aside the remote, he summoned a lovely quilt from another room and draped it over himself and Draco.

Draco glanced away from the telly to look at the quilt. Various runes had been carefully stitched into the fabric with thread that shimmered faintly. Despite feeling cool to the touch against his hand, the quilt was radiating comforting warmth against his body. He could feel his dizziness and nausea subsiding as he relaxed into the couch.

"The runes are to help keep away bad dreams," Harry explained, watching Draco tracing the stitching with his fingers.

"It's nice," Draco muttered, his eyes drifting closed. Harry nodded in agreement, closing his own eyes with a contented sigh.

As threatened, Ron stepped through the floo, intent on checking on Draco and Harry. He smirked when he saw them seated together on the couch with the quilt Mrs. Weasley had made for Harry. They were both sound asleep and Draco's head was resting on Harry's shoulder. Harry's head was leaning against Draco's blond hair.

Ron smiled to himself and left quietly.

HPDM~HPDM

Harry and Draco returned to work as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. They were glad to put the case behind them, like all the others, and move on. They worked surprisingly well together. Their rivalry at Hogwarts had made it difficult at first, but they'd worked hard to overcome it.

They still argued. A lot. But, Draco's snarky comments were now more likely to make Harry laugh than to provoke anger. Harry was far more witty than Draco had initially expected, and their banter made the work day less dull.

It was lucky that they'd grown to enjoy working together. The numerous bizarre situations they found themselves would have driven Draco to request a different partner otherwise.

Harry's fame was occasionally to blame for the departure from the usual work day. On one memorable afternoon, some witch had managed to corner Harry in the lifts. She'd flirted aggressively and then pressed something soft into Harry's hand before stepping off on her floor. She gave him a heated look as the door shuddered closed. Harry had yelped when he realized he was holding a pair of knickers.

They were still warm.

Harry had thrown the knickers onto the floor of the lift and set them on fire. Draco had sunk to the floor in a fit of hysterical laughter. Harry was grateful that most encounters weren't nearly so embarrassing. But Draco had made up for his laughter at Harry's expense by loudly berating the brazen witch for sexual harassment of the Chosen One. The atrium was probably not the best place for such a thing, but it did seem to warn others away from similar stunts.

A month after the de-aging incident, Draco and Harry found themselves in another bizarre predicament. In Harry's defense, the potion was slipped into their coffee while Harry's back was turned. But Draco still chose to blame Harry at that moment. Surely no good could come from allowing Harry to make coffee for the both of them so early in the morning.

With moments of drinking from their coffee, both men began to feel rather hot. Draco frowned, tugging at his collar uncomfortably. Why was it so bloody hot?

"I'm boiling," Harry muttered, tossing his outer robes aside and opening a few buttons of his shirt. He glanced up to see that Draco was rolling up his shirt sleeves and casting a cooling charm. The charm was little help.

Harry swiped at his sweaty brow and tugged his shirt off completely. He was beginning to feel queasy and his skin prickled unpleasantly. Something was definitely wrong.

His gaze fell to his desk and he spotted a piece of parchment that hadn't been there before. His eyes scanned the writing, widening in concern just before he doubled over in pain.

It was only a few moments and hadn't been the worst pain that Harry had ever felt. But it was certainly unpleasant. Someone in the potions division had played a prank.

Harry heard a sharp gasp and instantly remembered that he wasn't the only victim of the prank. He lifted his eyes to his partner's desk warily.

And there sat Harry Potter. Sort of.

"What the hell was that?" the other Harry said. He looked at his partner and he instantly understood. "Polyjuice," he said flatly. "In the coffee. Merlin, can't you do anything right?!"

"It was a prank," Harry retorted looking down at the paleness of his hands in shock. He was quickly distracted by the sight of Draco's bare chest.

Draco was similarly distracted. He looked down at the body he was occupying, his eyebrows raised. Harry was fit. He wasn't overly bulky but he had a pleasing layer of firm muscle. There was the barest dusting of hair on his chest. "Not bad Potter," Draco commented, running his hands across a taut abdomen.

"Stop touching my body," Harry muttered awkwardly.

Smirking, Draco ran his hands slowly over his chest. Then he paused, a curious look on his face. He brushed his fingers over the nipples again.

"What are you doing?" Harry demanded, his voice slightly higher than normal.

"It feels different," Draco shrugged. "Very little sensitivity."

Harry rolled his eyes. "My nipples aren't sensitive," he said. "It's hardly interesting information."

"It's just strange," Draco shrugged. "Try mine."

Harry signed heavily, giving Draco an impatient look. He brushed his hands lightly over his nipples, his eyes widening a bit with the sensation. It was a surprisingly pleasant feeling. So very different from what he experienced with his own body. His own nipples simply weren't an erogenous zone for him. "That's bloody weird," Harry murmured.

"It's nice, isn't it?" Draco chuckled.

At that moment the door opened and Ron walked in. He looked toward Harry's desk and saw what appeared to be a shirtless Draco Malfoy playing with his own nipples. Behind Malfoy's desk was Harry, reaching behind himself to cup his own arse cheeks with a mildly impressed expression. "What the hell are you doing?" Ron blurted out. "Malfoy, why are you fondling your nipples? Harry, what the hell? Why are you both half naked?"

"Calm down Weasley," Draco said. Of course, he said it with Harry's mouth.

"We were pranked by the potion division," Harry explained. "I'm pretty sure it was Davis that slipped the potion into our coffee. They've done a great job with the new formula."

"It doesn't last long enough to be useful in the field," Ron noted, looking thoughtful but amused.

Sure enough, Harry and Draco began to change into themselves. Once they were back to normal, they sighed with relief. The potion had only lasted for a few minutes. Quite useless, really.

Ron looked between them uncomfortably. "Davis and Harper said that you two needed me for a case," he said. "I suppose that was just an excuse to get me to come in here and catch you two being stupid." He paused, smirking at Harry. "So... Any particular reason you were stroking Malfoy's nipples?" Ron asked.

Harry's face reddened. "I just..." He glanced at Draco and then looked away again, flustered. "Shut up Ron."

Draco and Ron burst into a fit of laughter.


	2. Chapter 2

Movie night at Harry's house had become a weekly routine. Ron, Ginny, Hermione, Luna and Neville would arrive through the floo and they'd have dinner, drink and enjoy a muggle film. It was always nice for Harry to relax and enjoy the company of his friends.

When Harry invited Draco to join them, it was, at first, a slightly less relaxing activity. Harry had even encouraged Draco to bring Pansy and Blaise along. Ron had not been pleased.

Ron had done a decent job of tolerating Draco at work. And he got by with mostly ignoring Pansy when she popped by the DMLE. But having them invade his space outside of work seemed to be asking too much of him.

Despite Ron's initial complaints, it didn't take long for him accept the new arrangement. That may have been because Pansy brought over a large basket full of Honeydukes chocolate for the first movie night.

"Popcorn," Ginny announced, levitating several bowls of popcorn into the room. The bowls were eagerly snagged from the air as everyone was selecting a seat.

Harry and Draco were sitting side by side on the couch, their feet propped up the the coffee table in front of them. "This isn't another soppy romance is it?" Draco asked.

"Romantic comedy," Harry replied. "There's a love story, but it's also really funny."

"You enjoy that sort of thing?" Draco asked. "Movie full of people making cow eyes at each other?"

Harry laughed. "I do actually enjoy it, though I'm glad it's not as simplistic and ridiculous as you make it sound."

Draco wasn't particularly interested in the romance part of the film. Why would he want to watch someone else fall in love? They did stupid things and there was always a betrayal or some sort of misunderstanding that was utterly ridiculous. But, the comedy part sounded promising.

Draco truly enjoyed their movie nights. Ron's whining aside, he'd been made to feel welcome. Pansy and Blaise were treated kindly as well. Draco felt comfortable enough to relax and laugh with the others. It made him wish that things had been different when they'd been in school.

Draco shivered lightly. "Potter, your house is freezing," he complained.

This was a common complaint from Draco. Harry just rolled his eyes and summoned the quilt that Draco had come to favor. Harry dutifully draped the quilt over Draco's body. "Completely spoilt," Harry murmured, though he sounded amused instead of annoyed.

Draco didn't bother with denying it.

Pansy couldn't seem to stop her gaze from drifting over to Draco and Harry as the movie played. The pair seemed rather comfortable together. Periodically one of them would make a comment, speaking in low voices to avoid disturbing the others. Occasionally, their private commentary resulted in poorly stifled laughter.

Their interaction didn't seem to draw much attention from the others. It wasn't as if they were being particularly flirtatious. But Pansy wanted to see each of them happy and it suddenly occurred to her that they could be happy together.

Draco had been out with a few different wizards recently, but he hadn't been interested in pursuing any of them further. As far as Pansy knew, Harry was single and had been for some time. She imagined that he had concerns about people wanting to be with him for his fame and accomplishments.

As tempting as it was too interfere, Pansy knew that she'd have to resist. She'd attempted matchmaking in the past with Blaise. He'd had his heart broken and didn't speak to her for six months. So Pansy resigned herself to waiting and watching. And if the opportunity came, she'd offer as much encouragement as she could.

A burst of laughter broke through Pansy's thoughts. Harry was shaking with mirth and Draco was smirking. Pansy shook her head. If nothing else, they seemed to have created a decent friendship. For the time being, that would do.

HPDM~HPDM

Harry shuddered as he crouched behind a large dense shrub. The magic in the air was potent and wicked. Draco was kneeling, listening to the strange chanting from the group of wizards that stood around what appeared to be some sort of altar. Something creature been sacrificed on that altar. Judging from the number of bloodied feathers on the ground, it had probably been a large bird.

He wished that he'd requested a larger team for the mission. He was confident in himself and in Draco, but they hadn't anticipated a dark ritual complete with demonic chanting and animal sacrifices.

The case was getting stranger by the minute. There had been reports of disturbing amounts of blood being found in various locations along with remnants of dark magic. Robed figures had been spotted, but none of them could be positively identified. There hasn't been much to go on until that morning. The aurors received a frantic message from a witch claiming that there were dark rituals being performed near her family's property. Ron and his partner Robert Grant were assigned to the case with Harry and Draco along with another pair of aurors, Parker and Davis. The others had gone off in another direction.

"Weasley and Grant shouldn't be too far off," Draco said softly. Harry really hoped that he was right.

Suddenly, Harry was hit by a stunner and knocked face first into the shrub. A second stunner hit Draco and he collapsed as well.

When they came to, they were bound and sitting at the base of the bloodied altar. The wizards had their hoods up, keeping their faces in shadow. "You'll be testing our special brew for us," one of the men said in a strange raspy voice.

Harry struggled against the magical ropes as his head was forced back and a liquid poured into his mouth. A filthy hand clapped over his mouth, preventing him from spitting out the potion. Draco was forced to ingest a potion as well, and Harry's panicked brain noted that Draco's potion was slightly lighter in color.

For a few moments, nothing seemed to happen. And then pain tore through Harry's body. He felt as if his very skin was attempting to shred itself. Next to him, Draco cried out in agony. They helplessly writhed in pain. Their captors merely looked on. One of them was making notes in a little book.

As Harry blacked out, he was certain that he'd heard a shouted disarming spell. Ron and Grant had arrived.

HPDM~HPDM

Ron paced in the waiting room at Saint Mungos, his eyes unfocused as he remembered the condition he'd found Harry and Draco in. Their screams of pain still echoed in his mind. Even after they had passed out from the pain, they still groaned and shuddered.

Ron had sent his partner back to the minister to alert Head Auror Robards and Minister Kingsley. Most of the culprits had escaped. One of them had been caught by Ron, but he'd died within minutes. Ron knew that Robards was likely to be an arse about the whole thing. The dark wizards had gotten away. But Ron wasn't willing to risk losing two aurors, especially when one of them was his best mate.

Hermione had been one of the healers that rushed down the hallway. It made Room feel a little better that she was one of the people taking care of Harry. And Draco.

He had to admit that Draco wasn't so bad anymore. Draco was still a sarcastic, stuck-up prat, but he looked out for Harry in the field and his comments were more teasing than hateful. Ron would certainly never admit it out loud, but the former Slytherin had been a rather pleasant addition to their group of friends.

Ron shook himself out of his thoughts when he saw Hermione walking toward him. She looked pale and a bit shaken. "Are they alright?" Ron asked frantically.

"We've stabilized them," Hermione said, her voice wavering. "There was... an unexpected complication."

"Don't do that," Ron snapped. "Tell me what's wrong with them."

Hermione swallowed hard, motioning for Ron to follow her down the short hallway. She opened one of the doors and led the way inside, her eyes instantly seeking her patients.

Ron's felt a wave of nausea when he saw a few healers cleaning up blood from the walls. Bright red was splattered up the white walls and on the floor. Harry's face was unusually pale as he rested on his side.

Ron froze in shock.

"Wings," he whispered hoarsely.

Protuding from Harry's back were a pair of enourmous wings. They were large enough that Ron was sure they would drag the ground when Harry stood up. The feathers were mostly a pale gray with the edges lined in a darker gray. The wings almost looked silver in the light.

Rob turned his gaze to Draco. Sure enough, Draco had wings as well, but his were a brilliant white.

"We got the shock of our lives," Hermione said quietly. "I believe they were having so much pain from the growth of the wings. When they finally tore through the skin..." She trailed off, closing her eyes tightly. "It was horrible. The feathers sprouted after a few moments."

Ron nodded slowly. That explained why the feathers looked so clean despite the gore in the room. "Can it be reversed?" he asked. "Can you take the wings off?"

"Those wings are as much apart of them as their arms and legs," Hermione replied. "It would be incredibly painful to remove them. As for reversing the... ah, mutation... We're in the dark. We dare not traumatize these two any further. This is going to take time and research."

Ron was relieved when the healers finished cleaning up all the blood. He sat down on a chair near Harry's bed, determined to be there when Harry and Draco woke up.

Harry stirred two hours later, moaning softly in pain before his eyes fluttered open. "Ron," he whispered, wincing as he shifted in the bed. "Where's Malfoy? Is he alright?"

Ron smiled slightly. Harry was surely in a lot of pain, but his first concern was the well-being of his partner. "He's sleeping in the other bed," Ron said soothingly. "Try not to move too much. Hermione will be back in a moment with a pain potion."

Hermione entered a moment later, carrying two vials. "You're awake," she sighed, looking relieved. She reached out and tipped Harry's head back to help him drink the potion. She stroked his hair gently while the potion took effect. When his face relaxed, she withdrew her hand.

"What did they do to me?" Harry asked with wide anxious eyes. He could feel that something was different. There was an odd pressure on his upper back. He turned his head to peer over his shoulder and let out a startled yelp.

The sound woke Draco, and he attempted to get out of the bed. He cried out in pain as his wings caused him to topple to the floor. Hermione rushed to his side, pouring the pain potion down his throat before attempting to move him.

Harry had begun struggling to get up, so Ron helped him out of the bed. As soon as he was upright, Harry nearly fell backwards from the extra weight of the wings. Ron rebalanced him gently and helped Harry to move toward Draco.

Draco panted as Hermione helped him to his feet. He was relieved to see Harry coming toward him. He gasped sharply at the sight of the large great wings. Gripped with fear and dread he craned his head back, catching a glimpse of one of his own white wings. "What the hell happened?" he screeched hysterically.

"Stay calm," Harry said, reaching out and grasping Draco's shoulders. "We're alive. That's a good thing. Just try to relax."

Draco looked like he wanted flail about and screech a bit more. But he drew in a shaky breath and remained still under Harry's warm hands.

"Are they veelas?" Ron asked suddenly.

"No," Hermione replied at once. "That may have been a bit more simple had it been the case. They're actually a sort of... hybrid. The ritual and potion seemed to have forced their DNA to blend with that of a bird."

"A bird?" Ron asked, bewildered. "Why would those nutters try to turn them into birds?"

"I don't know," Hermione replied thoughtfully. "It's unclear if the goal was to cause them to completely transform or to create a hybrid."

"Can you change us back?" Draco asked anxiously.

Hermione bit her lip. "The change nearly killed both of you," she admitted, wincing at the blond's horrified expression. "It will take some time to determine if we can remove the bird DNA. We don't want to kill you."

"Are there changes aside from the wings?" Harry asked warily.

"A few things," Hermione admitted. "You'll find that you can produce a few new sounds as their are changes to the vocal chords. I'm relieved that you're both still capable of normal speech."

"You made a sort of weird chirping sound in your sleep," Ron informed Harry helpfully.

Harry blushed a little but shrugged it off.

"You've also developed a..." Hermione trailed off uncomfortably. "It's a cloaca. It's an opening for a bird's digestive and reproductive tracts. They're fairly well concealed. Almost like a second navel."

"You ogled my bird bits?" Draco squeaked, looking outraged and embarrassed. Ron snorted with laughter.

"I'm a healer," Hermione reminded him. "It's my job to examine you."

Harry was curious about his altered anatomy. But it didn't seem like the best time to get a look at himself. His fingers drifted over his lower abdomen slowly. And there it was. It did feel as if he simply had a second belly button.

"Is this the best time to be fondling yourself?" Draco snapped.

Harry scowled at him. "Don't be a prat," he retorted impatiently. He grabbed Draco's hand and placed it on Draco's abdomen, guiding his fingers. "Right there," Harry said. "Just a new opening. Nothing to panic about. It's probably mostly useless to us. We still have... you know, human parts."

"That's right," Hermione agreed with a nod. "That's what makes a few of the healers think it was meant to be a full transformation. Why include a part of a bird's anatomy that would be useless to a hybrid."

"They said that we were testing it," Harry remembered suddenly. "We were test subjects." Hermione pursed her lips in disapproval.

"So now we've got to figure out why they are trying to become birds," Ron sighed. "I'll go update Robards and Kingsley." He left the room with a tired wave.

"Alright, back in bed for you two," Hermione declared, gently pushing Draco toward his bed. "We can release you in the morning if nothing else happens."

"What could happen?" Draco asked apprehensively. He frowned as sat down, wondering how he would avoid crushing his wings.

"Probably nothing," Hermione said. "We feel confident that you're both stable now. But, it's best to be cautious since you nearly didn't survive. Your change was particularly difficult," she added.

Draco sighed as Harry moved around the bed and gently maneuvered Draco's wings as Draco layed down. Harry smoothed the feathers down slowly, smirking when Draco chirped involuntarily.

It was odd to have such sensations from appendages that hadn't existed mere hours earlier. Strangeness aside, Harry's stroking felt wonderful. It was similar to having someone gently run their fingers through your hair.

"Is that nice?" Harry chuckled.

Draco motioned for Harry to come around the bed. Once Harry was close enough, Draco reached out and trailed his fingers down soft gray feathers. He smiled smugly when Harry's eyes slid closed and he cooed softly.

Hermione stood to one side, unsure if it would be wise to interrupt the bizarre feather preening. Apparently they would have instincts to contend with. Hopefully this wouldn't decline into weird bird fights over "territory". Some male birds could be quite territorial, and Hermione had no idea what Harry and Draco would be like.

Harry forced his eyes back open and Draco pulled his hand away. Draco looked as tired as Harry felt. Harry moved to his own bed, getting on his hands knees on the mattress before carefully shifting onto his side, facing Draco's bed. The thought of being able to keep an eye on one another was oddly comforting.

Harry and Draco were released from the hospital the next morning as planned. Hermione would be monitoring them with house calls, just as a precaution. Harry was just glad to be out of the hospital and able to gain better control of his wings.

He'd figured out how to spread them out wide and pull them back in to rest closer to his back. He'd been able to flap them enough to lift up off the ground a little, though the effort had been exhausting.

The most difficult part so far was figuring out how to get through his house without breaking everything. He could repair things with a spell, but he'd prefer not to look like a clumsy oaf.

Harry had just finished his lunch when there was a loud knock on the door. He went to the door and opened it cautiously. He threw it wide open when he saw Draco.

Draco stormed into the house wordlessly. His feathers were all ruffled and his wings were a bit stiff with tension. His jaw was clenched in obvious anger.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked. "Did your parents get home today?"

Draco flinched and Harry began to worry. Draco's parents had been in France for a few weeks and were due to return home that day. Draco hadn't wanted to worry them by telling them about the attack and his transformation. Harry was sure that Draco was putting off the need to face it. Clearly it hadn't gone well.

"Father is furious," Draco said, his wings starting to droop as if the anger was draining out of him. "I've tainted the Malfoy bloodline."

"It's not your fault," Harry argued.

"As if that matters," Draco replied with a short humorless laugh, keeping his back to Harry. "And it's my fault for becoming an Auror and allowing myself to be partnered with you."

Harry moved around to face Draco. Draco looked sad and frustrated. "I'm sorry," Harry said softly.

Draco sighed. "I apologise for barging in like this," he muttered sheepishly. "I just couldn't stay there a moment longer, and I didn't feel comfortable going anywhere else. It's not as if these are inconspicuous," he added, gesturing toward his wings.

"It's alright," Harry assured him. "You're welcome here. Why don't you stay? At least for a few days while your father gets over his tantrum. I really don't mind," he added with a genuine smile.

Draco sighed again but didn't argue. He allowed himself to be turned around and, to his delight, Harry proceeded to preen and coax his feathers back into place with gentle fingers. It was amazing how quickly it relaxed him.

Harry worked silently, carefully smoothing the beautiful feathers down. Hermione had thoughtfully provided them with a good number of shirts made from special fabric; It opened in the back for the wings and then closed again, leaving two holes for the wings to protrude.

Harry nearly withdrew when he heard the floo activate, but he knew it was likely Hermione. When she stepped through the floo, Draco jumped and shifted to step away from Harry. Harry stopped him with a chirp and tapped his fingers against the top of Draco's wing.

Draco chirped sullenly in reply, but remained still. Then he huffed in annoyance for making such a ridiculous sound. And then Harry's fingers were back to soothing Draco's frazzled mind.

"Hello Hermione," Harry greeted cheerfully when he was sure that Draco was going to let him finish.

"Hi," Hermione replied with a grin. "How are you both doing?"

"Draco has had a difficult day," Harry said lightly. His hands stilled for a moment. He'd never actually called Draco by his first name before. They were always Potter and Malfoy, even outside of work. Well, if you were going to be preening another blokes feathers, may as well use his first name. Harry bit his lip to keep himself from laughing at that thought.

"Are you having any pain?" Hermione asked them.

"Only when I knock my wings into things," Draco muttered. "They're a nuisance."

"I've been practicing," Harry said, not bothering to look away from his task. "I was able to get my feet off the ground for a moment."

"Flying?" Draco asked eagerly.

"They're wings," Harry chuckled. "Not all birds can fly, but I think we could manage it." He ran his hands lightly over Draco's wings with a satisfied smile. "All done," he announced. "Feel better?"

"That did help actually," Draco admitted. "Thank you."

Harry nodded and then looked around his living room. "I need to make some changes," he said thoughtfully. "My furniture isn't made to accommodate wings. It's really difficult to sleep too. I just don't feel comfortable anywhere." Draco nodded his agreement.

Hermione stared at the couch thoughtfully. "Let me think on that one," she said slowly. "I'll come up with something. Are there any other problems or concerns?" When they shook their heads she cast a few diagnostic spells over each of them. She declared them both healthy and left, promising to see them the next day.

Harry and Draco spent the remainder of the day practicing with their wings. Their muscles and bones had changed a bit to support their wings and it was difficult to make the movements they desired.

Draco looked like an angel with his wings stretched out wide and a smile on his face. "They're beautiful," Harry said admiring the gleaming feathers.

Draco's wings fluttered slightly at the praise. "Thank you. I like the color of yours. They suit you," he added lightly. He smothered a yawn with his hand.

The sun was setting, painting the sky in pink and orange. They'd been outside for hours.

"Let's go in," Harry said, turning to go inside. "We'll have dinner and get you settled for the night."

They ate dinner in comfortable silence and then Harry led the way to one of the guest rooms. He provided clothes and plenty of extra pillows and blankets.

Satisfied that Draco would be comfortable, Harry went to his own room. He frowned at his bed. He'd taken to sleeping with an abundance of pillows to be comfortable. But he still didn't feel quite right.

Harry walked over to the bed, carefully arranging pillows and adjusting blankets. After a few minutes he cocked his head to scrutinize his work. He'd made a sort of nest. It wasn't perfect, but Harry found himself eager to climb into it. So he did.

The feeling of rightness was absurd. But Harry suddenly felt too content to care.


	3. Chapter 3

"You made a nest?"

Draco's voice pulled Harry from sleep. He blinked and lifted his head to peer toward the door.

Draco was leaning against the door frame, still wearing bed clothes and looking uncertain. Harry smiled sleepily and motioned for him to come closer.

Draco complied and walked over to the bed, peering into Harry's haphazard creation. "How was it?" Draco asked.

"Brilliant actually," Harry responded, stetching languidly. "I just had this strange sort of... urge to make this. So I did and it's amazing how much better I felt."

"Must be an instinct thing," Draco said with a frown. "Do you think we'll have a lot of that to deal with? Instincts, I mean. My father is already likely to disown me without adding more weirdness to it all."

"I'm sure your mother is going to smooth things over," Harry said gently. "We'll take this one day at a time. You're not alone in this." He sat up and climbed out of the nest abruptly. "Get in," he said eagerly.

Draco eyed the pillow nest wistfully. "Seems a bit..." He waved his hands vaguely. "Intimate. Personal. It's your bed."

"I'm giving you permission to try it," Harry reasoned. "That's why I got up. It's too small for two people. Just for a moment. If you like it, we'll make one for you later."

Draco hesitantly climbed onto the bed and then into the nest. Something about it was rather soothing. With Harry's encouragement he layed down on his side and relaxed. It was still warm and smelled like Harry. His wings were supported by fluffy walls. He sighed and happily nuzzled his face against one of the pillows.

"I told you," Harry laughed.

"I don't think I've ever been so comfortable," Draco said murmured.

"Then we'll make one for you," Harry said, grinning while Draco reluctantly crawled back out of the nest.

After a late breakfast, they worked together to get ready for movie night. Only Ron and Hermione had seen their wings and they were feeling a little apprehensive about being with the whole group. They tidied the living room and planned what dinner would be. The original plan had been for roasted chicken, but the thought of eating any kind of bird made them queasy. So Harry decided that steaks would be a better option.

Hermione arrived first, bringing along something that looked like a giant cushion. It was similar to a muggle bean bag chair, but it was big enough for two people. She plopped it onto the the floor of the living room looking pleased with herself. "This will work for now," she said. "You'll be able to relax on your stomachs while you watch the movie."

Draco gave the strange object a dubious look but didn't comment. He finished setting the dining room table as Harry levitated the food into the dining room.

Pansy arrived next, coming to an abrupt halt when she saw Harry and Draco. "You poor dears!" she cried, launching herself at Draco for a hug while carefully avoiding his wings. "I heard that your transformation was ghastly. Are you terribly uncomfortable?" She pulled back to look Draco over.

"I'm fine Pans," Draco said, taking a step back. "We're... coping with the changes. We haven't been out in public at all."

Pansy nodded sympathetically. "On a positive note, they're stunning," she said. "You look absolutely gorgeous." She turned to Harry and smiled. "Harry," she said finally. "You look amazing as well. Such lovely coloring."

Ron and Ginny arrived next, followed by Neville, Luna and Blaise. There was a lot of fuss over the wings before Harry could convince everyone to sit at the table.

"I thought you were making chicken," Ron said, filling his plate with food. He yelped when Hermione kicked him under the table. She gave him a pointed look and gave a miniscule shake of her head.

Harry cleared his throat awkwardly. "I didn't feel comfortable with making chicken," he said.

"But you love chicken," Ron protested.

"Ron!" Ginny snapped impatiently, glaring at him.

Ron looked over and saw that Harry and Draco looked a bit upset and maybe nauseous. He felt like an idiot. The thought of eating any sort of bird would probably feel like cannibalism. Ron felt bad that he hadn't considered that before opening his big mouth. They were already making so many adjustments, and now neither of them could stand the thought of eating something they enjoyed. Roast chicken was one of Harry's favorites and Draco loved it the first time he had it.

"I'm sorry," Ron said earnestly. "I didn't think of it that way and I feel bad that I upset you." He could see Ginny and Hermione nodding their approval.

"Thanks Ron," Harry responded, forcing a smile. "And it'll be fine. There are plenty of other options." Draco nodded his agreement but didn't speak.

"I'll bring you some of mum's recipes," Ron said, eager to make up for his idiocy. "All bird-free."

Draco rolled his eyes and began eating his steak in neat little bites. So far, he wasn't enjoying movie night. It was a little overwhelming. Some part of him, the bird part probably, wanted to hide away in the nest upstairs, away from all the chatty people.

When the meal was over, popcorn and various sweets were prepared in bowls while a movie was selected. Draco sighed and moved into the living room, glad that the others were still in the kitchen for the moment.

Harry set the movie up quickly and then approached Draco with a concerned down. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Draco replied, glancing over his shoulder to make sure they were still alone. "It's just... too much. You know? Too many people, too much noise, too many hands touching my wings." He huffed in frustration. "You know I've never really objected to being the center of attention, but it was so hard to stay in my seat during dinner. The impulse to escape was rather strong."

"I know," Harry said, nodding sympathetically. "Hermione thinks that some of the bird-like instincts will settle in a few days. She was a little afraid that movie night would be difficult for us." He guided Draco toward the massive cushion that Hermione had brought and they sat down.

When Harry reached for Draco's wings, Draco stopped him. "Can I?" Draco asked uncertainly, reaching for Harry instead. Harry chirped and then blushed before turning away from Draco.

As much as Draco enjoyed having his feathers preened and stroked, he wanted a task at that moment. It didn't require a great deal of thought, but caring for Harry's wings was soothing in a way. His fingers slid between feathers and stroked downward, straightening any that had been ruffled. He moved slowly, gently soothing itchy spots and easing the tension out of Harry's body.

"Er... Is this some sort of mating ritual?"

"Don't be ridiculous Ron," Hermione grumbled, brushing past him and sitting on the couch. "Why would they perform a mating ritual with us in the next room?"

"Kinky," Blaise winked, warning a snort from Ron and an eyeroll from Hermione.

"That's grooming, not mating," Pansy said helpfully, selecting a seat for herself. She pulled Ron down to sure next to her and propped her feet up in his lap. Ron shot her a look of amusement but didn't protest. He was far too curious about bizarre bird behavior.

"Fine, but why?" Ron asked impatiently.

"Harry and Draco share traits with birds," Luna said, carefully inspecting her popcorn. "Many animals, birds included, groom one another. A mating pair might do it, but it's also common with family groups." She glanced toward Draco and Harry. "I imagine it's rather soothing."

"You have no idea," Harry murmured.

"I think it's lovely that you have that sort of friendship," Luna said. "We'll wait for you to finish." She promptly turned to Pansy and started a strange debate on the legality of hunting Crumple-horned Snorkaks. Pansy looked utterly bewildered, but she launched into the debate.

Grateful for Luna's weird diversion tactic, Harry turned around to face Draco. Draco shifted to offer his wings, and was rewarded with Harry's hands gliding over his feathers.

When he was finished, Harry rolled over to lay on his stomach and Draco copied him. The cushion cradled their bodies nicely. "This feels nice," Draco commented.

"I told you," Hermine said proudly.

"Yeah, Hermione's a genius," Ron said flatly with a dismissive wave of his hand. Pansy elbowed him in the stomach.

The movie was started and the group settled in to watch.

HPDM~HPDM

Kingsley stared at Harry and Draco with an unreadable expression. It was his first time to see the wings for himself. Robards had seen them just after their release from the hospital and the man hadn't been exaggerating. Their wings were lovely to behold. As for the men themselves...

"You look as if you are handling this well," Kingsley commented lightly.

"Well enough," Harry responded with a slight smile. "I'm certainly glad to be away from the public eye while we adjust."

Kingsley nodded. "Lucius Malfoy paid a visit to the ministry today," he said cautiously.

Draco's wings fluttered in agitation. Harry's wings flared out briefly as he made a short cooing sound. Kingsley had no idea what that meant, but Draco seemed to understand. His fluttering ceased and he brought his right wing forward, carefully smoothing down his feathers. Harry chirped once in apparent approval of Draco's self-soothing method. Draco's chirped reply sounded a little sulky. Or it was all Kingsley's imagination.

Kingsley waited until Harry nodded at him to continue. "Malfoy Senior is threatening legal action against the DMLE," he said somberly. "He's making accusations of negligence and incompetence, claiming that his noble bloodline has been compromised."

Draco groaned, giving up on his feathers for the moment. Of course Draco's unfortunate condition would be reason for his father to throw a tantrum. And it certainly wasn't for Draco's sake.

"I only wanted you to be aware of this," Kingsley said. "I'd prefer for you to hear about it from me. You do, of course, have my greatest sympathy for your circumstances. Robards regrets not sending a larger team in."

"We had no way of knowing what would happen," Harry replied. "Now we know better."

"Indeed," Kingsley agreed. "Still, it pains me to see two of our best aurors suffer. While you seem to encounter the strangest problems in the field, there's no denying your worth in the department. Is there anything we can do for either of you?"

Harry glanced at Draco. "Draco's staying here for now. As long as he wants," he added firmly. "Hermione's helping us find suitable furniture. We might need a bit of help once we start going out in public again."

"You'll have Auror guards, of course," Kingsley said at once.

Harry hated the idea. He didn't want body guards, but he didn't want people staring, taking pictures or trying to get his attention in outlandish ways. Eventually they would have to leave the house, so it was sensible to have protection.

Kingsley seemed to sense Harry's discomfort. "We'll do whatever we can to make this easier," he said.

Kingsley left shortly after that. Draco hadn't spoken a word through the whole visit. "Want to talk about it?" Harry asked softly.

Draco shook his head, avoiding Harry's gaze. "Let's go outside," he suggested abruptly.

Harry eyed him with concern, but decided not to push it. Surely his father's rejection was quite painful for Draco. Not having support from some of the most important people in your life could make a difficult situation feel worse. So, Harry would be supportive. He could do that for Draco.

Outside, Draco gazed up at the cloudy skies. His feathers lifted and shivered with the breeze. Autumn had arrived and it seemed to be the perfect time to fly.

"I bet we could fly if we started from higher up," Draco said.

"It's worth a try," Harry replied with a little shrug. "I'll try it out first."

Draco waved him on, watching eagerly as Harry apparated to the roof of the house. Draco held is wand up for Harry to see, indicating that he was ready to assist if it didn't go well. He watched with bated breath as Harry leapt into the air.

Harry's wings spread out wide catching the air currents, slowing Harry's decent. They flapped in foreceful but controlled movements. And then Harry was flying. It was exactly graceful, but it was definitely flight. Once he'd gotten some practice, Draco was sure that Harry would be breathtaking in the air.

Draco's own attempt was even less graceful. He wasn't flapping hard enough to keep himself in the air. But Harry caught his hands and kept him up. "Flap harder," Harry panted in encouragement. "You can do it. Just focus on your wings."

It was exhausting. But Draco steadied his breathing and pushed himself to flap his wings harder. He laughed breathlessly when he was able to rise. He squeezed Harry's hands excitedly. "We did it!" Draco cried, impulsively throwing his arms around Harry for a hug while keeping his wings going. Harry returned the embrace exuberantly.

It took trial and error to figure out how to propel themselves forward or turn. But the practiced eagerly, laughing and joking all the while. They were both very tired, but neither was wanted to go inside yet. The darkening clouds appeared to determined to chase them indoors though.

"You're flying!"

Harry and Draco looked down to see that the source of the shriek was Pansy. She was standing in the grass and watching them with awe. Next to her was Narcissa Malfoy.

Draco stumbled upon landing but kept himself upright. He was immediately pulled into his mother's arms. "You could have broken your neck," she scolded.

"We were perfectly safe," Draco assured her. "We had our wands in case something went wrong."

"I always look out for Draco," Harry said, landing next to Pansy. "I wouldn't let him get hurt."

Draco chirruped softly before ducking his head and blushing. Harry smiled softly in response. Narcissa's eyebrows rose in surprise and confusion.

"It's an instinctual response," Pansy explained. "Draco's not been pleased with some of the more involuntary behaviors. They react sometimes without thought."

"It's mostly just a bit embarrassing," Harry explained with a wry smile. "We make sounds that humans don't. We can actually communicate with each other to an extent."

"I see," Narcissa said thoughtfully. She was curious about the sound Draco made, but she knew that it wouldn't be wise to ask what it meant. So, she changed the subject. "Darling, you mustn't let your father upset you," she said, stroking her son's hair. "He's shocked and worried. But he'll come around."

"He's not worried about me," Draco snapped, pulling away. "He doesn't want the Malfoy name sullied with a half-breed. I could be stuck like this for the rest of my life and he's throwing a tantrum about the bloodline. This transformation nearly killed me!"

Draco was breathing hard and shaking. His wings trembled. Without another word, we swept past his mother and went into the house, slamming the door as he went.

Narcissa was barely holding back tears. "He nearly died?" she asked, her voice choked.

Harry swallowed hard, looking down. "The potion caused horrendous pain as it changed us," he said quietly. "Our wings began to form within our bodies before they ripped their way out. There was so much blood..." He drew in a shaky breath, his eyes lifting to the door that Draco had just walked through. "Blood loss alone could have killed us. Hermione has nightmares about us bleeding out on the table."

Narcissa's tears spilled over her cheeks. "I love my son, half-breed or otherwise," she insisted. "I'll make his father see reason." She paused, swiping at her tears and straightening her posture. "Does he need anything? What can I do? I'm sure I could arrange appropriate living quarters for him very quickly."

"If that's what he wants," Harry said slowly. "He seems content to stay here, and I'm glad to have him around. I think he just wants to feel that he hasn't lost his parents because of this."

"Can I speak with him before I go?" Narcissa asked.

Harry nodded leading the way into the house. He looked up to see Draco striding toward him purposefully. In the next moment, Draco was in his arms. Harry cooed, hugging Draco tightly.

Draco shuddered. He hated himself a little bit at that moment. He hated feeling week. He'd been so angry and hurt, and the lingering fear over his new condition had flooded him with sudden panic. As much as he didn't want to resort to such a thing, he'd been on his way to demand that Harry come inside.

It was unsettling, this need to be comforted by Harry Potter. Draco supposed it was due to the fact that, as far as as they knew, Harry was the only one in the world who could know what this was like. Harry was familiarity that Draco craved. He was safety and comfort.

"Come on then," Harry said softly. He coaxed Draco toward the hallway, looking at Pansy over his shoulder. "Pans, why don't you make some tea? We'll be back shortly."

Pansy moved to prepare tea, aware that Narcissa was watching her. "There relationship is... more intimate than I would have guessed," Narcissa said carefully.

Pansy nodded, levitating the tea tray into the living room. She sat down and poured the tea, allowing Narcissa to prepare her own as she wished. "It's not sexual or romantic though," Pansy said. "Granger thinks that their hormones are unbalanced right now. Their human side sort of warring with the bird side. Draco is anxious and tense from all these changes. And then there's his father..."

"Mr. Potter seems to be handling this just fine," Narcissa noted.

"Harry copes differently," Pansy replied with a shrug. "It's been really hard for him as well, but he's not faced rejection from those that he considers family. And I think it helps him to care for Draco."

In Harry's bedroom, Harry was stroking Draco's feathers with one hand while his other hand pressed lightly against the middle of Draco's back, keeping the blond close. "Just relax," Harry said softly.

"I feel like an idiot," Draco grumbled, leaning his head against Harry's.

"Well don't," Harry said. "There's nothing wrong with needing this."

"I'm not a child that needs to be coddled," Draco growled, pulling away.

"Nobody thinks that you're a child," Harry retorted. "Have you ever considered that I might need this too?"

Draco frowned. "You?" he asked.

Harry sighed. "Draco, I'm terrified," he admitted, folding his arms over his chest. "Some lunatics made us half bird and we don't know why. We've changed in ways that we don't fully understand and we may never be fully human again. We haven't had much time to fully appreciate what that could mean. The life I chose for myself has been taken from me." He paused, looking away. "You make me feel better."

Draco stared at Harry in silence. Then he moved closer and pulled Harry's arms back open, stepping into his embrace again. He sighed as Harry pressed his forehead against Draco's neck.

"I think I can get through this if I've got you," Harry said quietly.

"You've got me and your other friends," Draco agreed. "We'll be alright."

After a few minutes, they released their hold and went back downstairs. Narcissa made a sound of sympathy when she saw that both young men looked tired and suspiciously glassy eyed. "Are you alright?" she asked, glancing between them.

"We are," Draco assured her. "I apologize for losing my temper."

"No apology necessary," Narcissa replied, setting her teacup aside. "You are under a lot of strain. Your father is a fool and I will handle him." She hugged her son warmly. "Might I visit again?"

"Of course," Harry answered immediately.

Narcissa smiled and kissed Draco's forehead. "You take care of each other, and we'll speak soon," she said. She left through the floo in a swirl of green flames.

Pansy scrutinized the two men sharp eyes. "Are you really alright?" she asked, noting the faint redness around Draco's eyes.

"Perfectly," Draco responded.

"Liar."

Draco rolled his eyes at her. "I'm well enough," he amended. "I was... overwhelmed. And I'm not accustomed to..." He trailed off, wringing his hands together. He had no idea how to phrase it without sounding ridiculous. To anyone else, it would sound odd.

Pansy didn't seem to need further explanation. "It's fine Draco," she said. "I hope you know that I'm here for you. The others are too." She kissed each of them on the cheek before stepping through the floo.


	4. Chapter 4

Harry and Draco were glad to return to work, even though they couldn't return to the field yet. If at all. Robards had decided that it would be too dangerous for two winged Aurors to be chasing down criminals. The dark wizards that had attacked them were still loose, and probably wouldn't hesitate to attack again. Harry and Draco were now painfully easy to spot in a crowd.

They had to travel to the DMLE by using the floo directly to their office. The other Aurors had been alerted to the situation and urged to keep the information confidential.

Harry and Draco spent their day doing paperwork or going over case files. It was far less exciting than field work, but they were glad to be able to help with cases. They even solved two cases right from their office.

Ron and Grant were still caught in the middle of the investigation of the dark wizards. They found the body of a wizard that had gone through a similar transformation, but he hadn't survived. Ron had been badly shaken by the sight of the mangled, bloody, winged corpse. It could have ended as badly for Harry and Draco.

"We found another ritual site," Ron said, entering the office and dropping into a chair near Harry's desk.

"Any casualties?" Harry asked.

"None that we could find," Ron replied. "But, we did find a bit of the potion. I sent it to the lab for analysis. Maybe the ingredients themselves will be a clue. Or we could find a cure," he added, nodding toward Harry's gray wings.

"It's not an illness, Weasley," Draco said impatiently. "We're not sick. We're not completely human any more."

Ron glared at him. "I know that," he snapped. "And I have no issue with you being only partially human. You know that. I thought the idea of possibly reversing it would make you happy."

Harry gave Draco a pointed look and Draco sighed. "I do know, and... I appreciate your optimism," Draco said, his shoulders tense.

Ron smiled. "Well, I didn't mean to ruffle your feathers," he said, looking smug.

"Bird puns," Draco muttered, glaring when Harry snorted with laughter. "Think you're clever Weasley?"

"Nah, I'm just winging it." This was said with an obnoxious waggle of eyebrows.

"Get out of my office," Draco demanded.

Ron cackled and ran out as Draco sent a mild stinging hex at him.

HPDM~HPDM

Movie nights had become much easier to tolerate as the weeks went by. Harry was grateful that he could relax and enjoy the company of his friends again. The noise was much less bothersome and conversation was easy again.

Dinner had been delicious with no awkward questions about eating chicken. Though Ron was pleased to throw out as many bird-related puns as he could. Draco always did his best to look very annoyed, but it didn't always work.

"Another sappy romance?" Draco asked as Hermione passed him.

"Not a fan?" Hermione asked with a smile.

"They're not horrible," Draco admitted. "I like it when they're funny. But I don't see the point of you girls sobbing over a couple too moronic to properly get it together until the end."

Hermione laughed. "They're not all like that," she responded. "I like the fantasy of it. Dreaming of finding someone that loves you and wants to do a bunch of silly things to show their love. Snogging in the rain, dancing in the street... Who wouldn't want to be adored by someone?"

"Even know-it-all Granger?" Draco chuckled.

"Even me," Hermione grinned. "I may not have the opportunity to date much, but the desire to be loved deeply is there." She paused, glancing over to where Harry was fiddling with the telly's remote control. "Harry's the same way. It takes a few drinks to get him to admit to it, but he's very much a romantic."

She winked at him as their other friends came into the room with their snacks and drinks. Draco was thoughtful as the movie began to play. He was stretched out next to Harry on their giant cushion. As the love story unfolded of the telly, Draco's gaze drifted to Harry.

Harry's eyes were intent on the screen. A wistful little smile tugged at his lips. It wasn't terribly noticeable, but Draco spotted the expression anyway. Harry wanted romance and to be loved. Seemed like an obvious thing, but it hadn't occurred to Draco before. Why would it? They were auror partners and friends and the last two months had been spent dealing with their... condition.

But now, Draco found himself considering. He looked away from Harry, staring absently at the telly instead. He'd been living with Harry since a few days after their release from the hospital. They were closer than Draco had ever thought possible. They never spoke of it, not really. But they relied on and trusted one another. Draco loved Harry's touch and he suddenly wondered how it would feel for those hands to do more than reassure and sooth.

Draco glanced at Harry again, the brunette engrossed in the love story. Draco could make that real for Harry. He wanted to. He felt like an idiot for not seeing the potential for more than friendship sooner. There was always the chance that Harry wouldn't want more, but... Best not think about that. The important thing was that Draco had feelings for Harry, and Draco wanted to give him the romance he deserved.

"You alright?" Harry asked softly.

Draco could have kicked himself for getting caught staring. "I'm fine. Just thinking," he responded turning back to the telly.

Draco waited for a few moments and then shifted a bit, propping himself up on his right arm. He reached with his left hand and stroked down soft gray feathers.

Harry turned to look at him in surprise and confusion. Draco merely smiled and continued to run his fingers over Harry's lovely wings. Harry continued to peer at him for a moment before turning back to the film uncertainly.

They didn't usually touch for the sake of touching. There was grooming and comforting. That was it. Harry was a little confused. He certainly wasn't going to complain, but he wasn't sure of how he was supposed to feel about it. He sighed softly, deciding to just enjoy it for the moment.

Draco was delighted to see Harry drifting to sleep with a soft smile on his face. He hadn't made it through the whole movie.

"Is Harry asleep?" Ron asked incredulously once the telly was shut off.

"He is," Draco confirmed with a grin.

"You petted Potter to sleep?" Blaise asked with a snort of laughter.

"I think it's sweet," Luna chimed in. "Maybe even romantic."

"Romantic?" Ron asked in a choked voice. He whined when Pansy swatted him.

"We'll get out of your way so he can sleep," Hermione said. She gave Draco a brief, searching look before leaving, followed quickly by the others.

"Harry?" Draco called, prodding gently at Harry's side. "You should go to bed."

Harry opened bleary eyes and peered up at Draco with a sleepy smile. "Hey," he said softly. He frowned and lifted his head to look around. "Where is everyone?"

"The movie ended and they went home," Draco responded, smoothing down Harry's hair and making Harry hum in approval.

"Sorry I fell asleep," he mumbled.

"No need to apologize," Draco insisted. He watched as Harry yawned and put his head back down. Smirking, Draco pulled Harry up and turned him around, chuckling when Harry pressed his face to Draco's shoulder. Draco pulled out his wand and cast a charm to make Harry lighter. Then he scooped Harry up without a word of warning.

Harry chirped loudly in alarm. "Calm down," Draco chuckled. "I'm putting you to bed. Tuck your wings in."

Harry obediently pulled his wings closer to his body. He was too tired to protest, so he nuzzled into Draco's shoulder and breathed in the familiar comforting smell that lingered on Draco's clothing and wings. It smelled like sandalwood and something sweet. Draco always smelled heavenly. "You smell so good," Harry muttered as they made it to Harry's room.

Draco carefully placed Harry in his best of people pillows and covered him with a blanket. On impulse, he brushed a soft kiss on Harry's forehead before slipping out of the room.

HPDM~HPDM

Word had spread about Harry and Draco's condition thanks, in part, to Lucius Malfoy's ministry tantrum. They'd known that it would be impossible to contain the situation within the DMLE. People just loved to talk.

Unfortunately, it resulted in a great deal of letters from people the two men hardly knew. And their lack of appearance in public had driven the gossip-mongers spin increasingly wild tales. One theory was that the pair had become more bird than human and had flown off to roost in the Amazon. Draco had laughed a great deal over that one.

And so, while dreading the wizarding public, Harry and Draco prepared to leave the house for something other than work. They had dinner plans with their friends.

"Harry Potter!"

Harry didn't recognize the voice of the woman that had shouted his name. And he had no interest in lingering in Diagon Alley to find out who it was. Draco's wings were already fluttering in agitation.

A crowd was gathering around them and Harry groaned, wishing they could have apparated directly to the restaurant. Draco pressed closer to Harry as the crowd drew closer. They were all talking excitedly and asking questions at once. Harry let out a loud trill and discretely pulled out his wand when hands stretched out to touch their feathers.

"Back away!" Ron's voice barked over the crowd. Ron began unceremoniously shoving people aside, his wand raised as he made his way to Harry and Draco. Blaise and Neville were close behind him. "That sound was a warning. You do not touch their wings," Ron growled. "Would you allow some stranger to grope your arse in public?"

"That's completely different," one woman objected, looking scandalized.

"It's really not," Blaise drawled. "Those wings are part of their bodies as much as their other appendages. They're sensitive and shouldn't be handled lightly."

"It's incredibly rude," Neville added, "for any of you to touch them. It's too familiar a gesture."

"Move along," Ron snapped.

The people seemed rather unwilling to comply until Hermione and Ginny slipped through the crowd to flank Harry and Draco. "Let us pass," Hermione said coolly.

Harry sighed quietly, relieved when people moved out of the way so they could go on their way. Nobody had seemed hostile, but their demanding sort of curiosity had been unsettling. Harry had been prepared to force his way through if he had to, but the Daily Prophet would have published some ridiculous article able he and Draco being aggressive and dangerous after their transformation.

They made it to the new restaurant without a word and Harry and Draco were ushered inside. Luna and Pansy were sitting at a large round table, sipping wine. Aside from the staff, the rest the of the establishment was empty.

"Mrs. Malfoy made the reservation," Blaise explained, walking toward the table. "She compensated them handsomely for allowing us to have the place to ourselves."

Harry sat down at the table, relief flooding through him. After being cornered on the street, he didn't think he could tolerate being stared at during the meal. He smiled tightly as Draco sat next to him.

The restaurant staff were polite and efficient. A few got caught staring at the gray and white feathers, but they had the grace to flush with embarrassment and look away.

Draco was all charm during the meal. He talked and laughed between between bites, seeming perfectly at ease. It made Harry wonder if being in the house with Harry so much made the blond unhappy. They were friends of course, but Draco had a life outside of Harry. Had Harry been selfishly keeping Draco to himself. He hadn't intended to.

Harry's anxious thoughts faltered, when something brushed against his knee. He glanced down to see Draco shift his leg closer, firmly pressing his knee against Harry's. Harry looked back up to find Draco's eyes on him. "Having a good time?" Draco asked, reaching up to smooth down Harry's hair gently.

"Yeah," Harry replied, sounding breathless. He cleared his throat. "This is great."

Draco smiled. "We should go home and watch a movie after this," he suggested quietly. "Just us."

Harry blinked in surprise. "I assumed that you'd want to go shopping or something," he said. "We rarely leave the house."

"Maybe another time," Draco replied with a little shrug. "Unless that's what you'd like to do."

"No, I-" Harry swallowed hard. "I just thought you'd be tired of being stuck at my house all the time."

Draco hummed, taking a final bite of his dinner. "Going out is nice," he allowed. "But I enjoy our time together. If I didn't, I wouldn't have stayed."

Harry was relieved. But he also felt... He wasn't sure he could think of a name for it. Harry shifted in his seat, biting down on his lip. Draco's smile was having a strange effect on Harry's heart rate.

Dessert was brought to the table and Draco was pleased by the sight of the decadent slice of chocolate cake that was placed before him. Harry hadn't ordered anything as he was feeling bizarrely nervous.

Draco tasted the cake, moaning quietly at the rich flavor. "You need to try this," he informed Harry.

"That's alright," Harry declined with a nervous sounding little chuckle.

Draco turned his body slightly and rested his left hand on Harry's knee while holding his fork up to Harry's mouth, a bit of cake perched on the tines. Harry opened his mouth, allowing Draco to feed him the cake. The flavor was wonderful, but it wasn't nearly as pleasing as the affectionate expression on Draco's face.

Pansy watched as Draco patiently fed Harry little bites of chocolate cake, occasionally taking a bite himself. Draco seemed to be enjoying himself. Harry looked as if he wasn't completely certain that it was actually happening.

"Er- That's obviously not grooming," Ron said softly, leaning a bit closer to Pansy.

Pansy giggled. "Obviously," she agreed. "They were fully human at one time. Those behaviors are still there. Perhaps they fancy one another. Would that be so hard to believe?"

Ron considered that for a moment. Draco and Harry had become good friends. They spent a lot of time together. There was all the odd touching that went on between them. It wasn't much of a stretch to think that such caring could develop into romantic feelings. "No, I see what you mean," Ron said. He smiled slightly. "They already take care of each other."

"I'm a little afraid they might flirt themselves to death before anything fun happens," Ginny whispered, shamelessly inserting herself into the conversation.

"Harry looks like he's just now realized that flirting is an option," Neville put in quietly.

"They're surrounded by nargles," Luna added.

"Are we all jumping into Pansy and Ron's conversation now?" Blaise asked, smirking at Pansy's annoyed expression. Hermione coughed lightly to hide a laugh.

Harry and Draco seemed to be oblivious to their friends until they'd had their fill of cake. The bill was paid and Draco declared that they needed to all go out together more often. And then he was pulling Harry close and apparating them back to the house.

Harry was pleasantly full and a little tired, but he wasn't willing to go to bed yet. Draco seemed to agree as he coaxed Harry onto the large fluffy cushion they always shared. Draco set up a movie to play before settling in beside Harry. Draco relaxed on his side, propped up on one elbow. He was surprised when Harry rolled over to face him instead of watching the movie.

For a moment, they just looked at each other. Then Harry scooted closer, draping one arm to rest his hand on Draco's lower back. Draco nuzzled into Harry's neck, sighing softly. They didn't speak. They didn't move. The movie was completely ignored as they drifted to sleep, snuggled together.

HPDM~HPDM

Autumn went by in a flurry of activity. Harry and Draco made frequent trips out, always carefully guarded by their friends or a few Aurors. Ron had become increasingly frustrated as more reports came in about dark rituals, but he could never catch up with the wizards responsible.

Draco and Harry's relationship had grown more affectionate, but Harry was hesitant to initiate anything. Part of him was worried that Draco was only acting as he was because of a lack of options. Harry didn't want that. If by some miracle their condition was reversed, where would that leave them? Then again, it wasn't fair to doubt Draco in that way.

Draco glanced at Harry's thoughtful expression as the walked through Diagon Alley. It was early December and snow was falling softly around them. They'd decided to do some shopping for Christmas and enjoy some hot chocolate at Fortescue's.

Christmas music drifted out of one of the shops and Draco smiled at the sound. It reminded him of something Hermione had mentioned. He abruptly stopped and pulled Harry around to face him.

Harry looked surprised, but not worried and that warmed Draco's heart. "Dance with me," Draco said with a grin.

"Now?" Harry asked, his eyes wide.

"Now," Draco nodded. "Right here in the street."

Harry laughed in delight as Draco pulled him closer and twirled them around to the rhythm of the music. The fallen snow muffled their steps and snowflakes clung to their hair. Their wings swayed with them, the wind lifting their feathers in little rippling waves.

At first, they only had eyes for each other. And then they realized that several couples had been inspired and were now dancing. Draco's heart fluttered when Harry laughed again.

When they resumed their shopping, it was with Harry's hand clasping Draco's.

They returned home and set about decorating for Christmas. While Harry was spelling sparkling baubles onto the tree, Draco was hovering nervously in the doorway. He looked down at the sprig of mistletoe in his hands. He drew in a deep breath and reached up to attach the mistletoe to the doorframe, directly over his head.

"Harry?"

Harry frowned slightly at the strange anxiety in Draco's voice. He turned to the blond in concern, his mouth going dry when he spied the mistletoe. Well, there was certainly no mistaking the request.

Harry set down his wand and approached Draco slowly, his heart beating frantically. He tilted his head back slightly, as Draco was a bit taller than Harry. "You could have just asked," Harry said softly, a smile spreading on his face.

"Where's the fun in that?" Draco scoffed playfully. "It's as if you don't know me at all."

Harry cupped Draco's jawline and pulled him into a soft sweet kiss. And then another. And then his tongue was brushing against Draco's.

It was brilliant. Draco was flooded with pleasure and contentment. It was almost overwhelming.

"Does this mean we can be more than friends?" Harry asked, breaking the kiss but still holding Draco close. "Like... together? A couple?"

"That's what you want?" Draco asked.

"So much," Harry confirmed softly.

"Thank Merlin," Draco chuckled, kissing Harry's forehead.

Harry sighed happily. No relationship was a guarantee, but he had a good feeling about this one. They'd been building up a lasting friendship and Draco was worth the risk.

Their friends weren't surprised by their change in relationship status. They were amused by Harry's changed behavior. Before, he'd been a little confused and nervous, though accepting, of Draco's advances. Now Harry doted on Draco enthusiastically. Draco was treated to breakfast in bed, foot rubs, back massages and chocolates. Draco basked in Harry's adoration, happily returning the affection.

Harry had also become more protective and perhaps a bit possessive on occasion. The day before Christmas, Pansy had kissed Draco's cheek affectionately and Harry's wings had flared out wide as he trilled loudly in warning. Pansy leapt away from Draco, watching Harry warily.

Harry's aggressive stance was dropped an instant later, his wings dropping and his face mortified. "I- I'm so sorry," he stammered, horrified by his reaction. He'd felt a bit off all day, but he hadn't thought that he'd behave so terribly. Something had just... come over him.

"It's fine Harry," Pansy assured him. "I was just startled. No harm done."

Draco made a soothing cooing sound, gently nuzzling Harry's cheek with his nose. "Just relax Harry. Everything is fine," Draco murmured, reaching around to smooth down Harry's feathers.

"Except that I'm apparently a lunatic," Harry grumbled.

"I think it was sort of sexy," Draco murmured. "You just want me all to yourself." He leaned in and pressed little kisses along Harry's jaw.

"Well, this is hawk-ward," Ron quipped. He grinned. "Get it? I said 'hawk', 'cause that's a bird."

"Are you serious?" Draco asked incredulously. "Bird puns right now?" He couldn't be too annoyed though; Ron's ridiculous joke had made Harry chuckle.

It was a few weeks later that Pansy managed to ask what they'd all been wondering about the couple. Pansy was stunned when she realized that they'd not had sex. Pansy eyed Draco as he arranged some biscuits on a plate to go with their tea.

"Why would you not want to shag each other senseless?" Pansy hissed, glancing over her shoulder to make sure they weren't overheard.

Draco scowled. "I never said we didn't want to," he retorted. "We're taking our time getting there. It's Harry. We only get one first time together, and it's important to me."

Pansy smiled as Draco levitated the tray into the next room where their friends were waiting. She hadn't expected such restraint from Harry and Draco considering the affection that they readily displayed. She'd never known Draco to place such emotional value on physical intimacy. She wondered if he was fully aware of how hard he had fallen for Harry Potter.


	5. Chapter 5

Draco felt a little strange. He was horribly tired and annoyed for no real reason. He felt too hot and a little dizzy. He didn't mention it to Harry because he didn't want to worry his boyfriend. Harry would insist on a thorough exam with Hermione. Surely fatigue and irritability were nothing to be concerned over. And Hermione's examinations were awkward at best. At worst, rather humiliating.

"It's a beautiful day," Harry noted, peering out one of the windows at the lovely blue sky. Spring had arrived and the trees and grass were green again. Flowers were starting to bloom and the air was sweet with nature's rebirth. "I think fresh air would do us both good."

Draco set down his teacup and stood up to stretch his wings. Perhaps a short flight and a kip in the sun would be nice. It would certainly improve his mood before his parents came over for dinner.

The couple soared through the sky, delighting in the freedom of it. They hadn't flown much during the winter and they'd missed it. When they'd worn themselves out, they sprawled out in the grass, letting the sun warm their feathers.

They slept curled together until they heard Narcissa calling to them. They sat up slowly to find Narcissa leaning over them. She looked amused but a bit tense. Behind her was Lucius, wearing a scowl of disapproval.

Harry helped Draco to his feet and greeted the Malfoys politely. He ushered them inside, hurrying into the kitchen to prepare dinner. Draco quickly decided that wine would be preferable to tea at that moment so he offered it, happy to get some alcohol in his system. He'd need it to endure his father's sour looks.

"So, now you spend your time lying on the ground like some sort of ruffian," Lucius sneered.

Draco clenched his jaw and then forced himself to relax. "We were warming our feathers," he said, waving one hand dismissively. "It felt nice, so we fell asleep."

"You could at least attempt to keep up appearances," Lucius hissed.

Draco rolled his eyes. "It's not as if we do that in public," he retorted. "Harry's yard is warded to prevent prying eyes and intruders. Not that we have reason to feel shame. It's perfectly natural." At least he thought it was. They didn't exactly have any examples to follow. Hermione hadn't found any books on human/bird hybrid etiquette, so they assumed that such a text didn't exist. So, they did what seemed appropriate to them. Lucius didn't need to know that they were making it up as they went along though.

Harry announced that dinner was ready just as the awkward silence was becoming unbearable. Harry made a low chirping sound that Draco returned, drawing an alarmed stare from Lucius. He glanced at Narcissa to see that she wasn't at all concerned that their son had just twittered like a common bird.

Lucius remained silent for most of the meal. He'd switched out the wine for firewhiskey, wishing that he could drink away the whole absurd situation. Draco was also nursing his own firewhiskey, fantasizing about snogging Harry on the dining table just to annoy his father.

Narcissa and Harry were keeping calm and chatting amiably. They got along remarkably well and Draco was grateful for that. They seemed content to ignore Lucius and the aggressive way he was eating his potatoes.

Once the dessert was set on the table, Lucius and Draco had each had a bit too much firewhiskey. Lucius set his glass down hard, making Harry wince. "Are we just going to pretend this isn't a problem?" Lucius demanded.

"Perhaps you should drink less if you feel it's a problem," Narcissa noted, dabbing at her lips primly.

"Don't," Lucius snarled. "Don't make light of this. Our only son and heir is half bird and debasing himself with this..." He wiggled his fingers vaguely in Harry's direction, failing to think of something unflattering to call Harry.

"Don't hurt yourself there Lucy," Harry smirked.

"How dare you!" Lucius growled, rising from his seat and lifting his wand.

Draco was on his feet faster than was probably advisable considering the amount of alcohol he'd consumed. "No," he snapped at his father. "This is Harry's home, and you are out of line." He pressed his palms to the table to steady himself. "We couldn't help what happened to us. It doesn't make me any less your son. And if you think that I could do better than Harry Potter, with or without wings, then you're mental. It's not a degrading by any stretch of the imagination. He's the best thing that could have happened to me."

"That's enough," Narcissa said firmly. She could see that her son was getting quite upset and that Harry looked desperate to either comfort him or attach Lucius. "Lucius, this behavior is unacceptable. We're leaving." She glared when he seemed ready to argue and he fell into petulant silence. Narcissa turned back to Harry and Draco. "Harry dear, dinner was heavenly and I look forward to seeing you again. Draco darling, relax and enjoy the rest of your evening." She turned and shooed Lucius out of the room.

Harry grabbed Draco's glass and tossed back the remainder of the firewhiskey. It burned down his throat and his eyes watered. "Bloody hell," he gasped. "What a nightmare."

For a moment, Draco stood still, breathing through a mild wave of dizziness. Then he opened his eyes and looked at Harry.

Harry gasped when Draco pounced on him. Draco kissed Harry as if his life depended on it. His hands slid up into Harry's dark hair, gently tugging at it. His tongue invaded Harry's mouth with staggering urgency. He pressed their bodies together with a little moan. "Take me upstairs," he breathed, nipping at Harry's lower lip.

Harry wasted no time in complying. They stumbled up the stairs together, hands seeking whatever skin they could reach. They paused in Harry's bedroom to bring their mouths back together for a deep kiss.

Harry struggled out of his shirt and hastily began adjusting his nest of pillows to make room for Draco while Draco eagerly removed his own clothing. This was easier said than done since Draco had decided that it was a good time to press warm wet kisses to the bare skin on Harry's back. Harry moaned but managed to keep working.

Until Draco swiftly removed Harry's trousers and tugged down his pants. Before Harry could make a sound, Draco's mouth was on Harry's cock. Harry's groan was loud and delightfully shameless. His knees nearly buckled as pleasure burned through him.

"Get on the bed before I fall on you," Harry panted, biting his lip as Draco slowly pulled off. Harry kissed him swiftly before urging the blond into the altered pillow nest.

Harry climbed into the nest, drawing Draco into another kiss. He slid his hands down Draco's body, grateful that the blond had been so eager to get naked.

"Harry," Draco moaned softly. "I want you inside me."

Harry closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath. "You know I want to," Harry said, tone full of regret. "But you're a bit drunk and you're upset with your father. I want us to make that step sober and clear headed." He smiled when Draco pouted. "But I can still make this good for you. If you want?" he added hopefully.

"Yes," Draco nodded eagerly. "Whatever you're willing to give me." He sighed happily when Harry helped him to lay back, draping his wings over the edge of the nest.

Harry rested himself between Draco's thighs, his fingers stroking over sensitive nipples as he swallowed Draco's cock. Draco's eyes rolled back as he was enveloped with wet heat. He couldn't remember the last time something had felt so amazing. The alcohol swirling through his system would likely make this a shorter experience than Draco wanted, but it couldn't be helped at that moment.

One of Harry's hands abandoned Draco's nipple in favor of slipping into Draco's opening. The fingers were wet and a bit cold. Draco hadn't even heard Harry open a bottle of lube or mutter a spell. Probably because Draco was moaning shamelessly, his fingers tangling in Harry's hair.

Draco's orgasm was exquisite. There could be no other words for it as far as Draco was concerned. Once Harry swallowed, Draco yanked him up for a kiss, his tongue catching remnants of his own release. Draco took hold of Harry's aching cock and stroked him to orgasm, allowing it to spill over his stomach in white rivulets. Then Draco hugged Harry close, not caring that Harry's semen was being smeared between them.

"You're wonderful," Draco murmured, pressing sleepy kisses to Harry's shoulder.

Harry smiled and cast a few spells to clean up the mess they'd made. Once they were no longer sticky, he turned Draco so they were laying on their sides, face to face and they drifted to sleep.

HPDM~HPDM

Draco realized where he was before opening his eyes. He was warm and safe in Harry's bed. His eyes fluttered open to see an oddly concerned expression.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked anxiously.

"I'm so sorry," Harry blurted out. "You had too much to drink and I took advantage."

Draco shook his head. "It's fine Harry," he soothed. "I wanted you. Badly. I don't regret it and I hope that you don't either."

"Of course not," Harry denied hastily. "I just... I probably should have given you a sobering potion before we did anything."

"I really wasn't as bad off as you seem to think," Draco replied. "I have a slight headache, but otherwise I feel fine. You did nothing wrong. In fact, it was so right that I think I need a repeat performance," he said slyly, reaching down to stroke Harry's erection. He slid his tongue into Harry's mouth as he pressed their groins together, bring one leg up to curl over Harry's hip.

They rocked together slowly, starting their morning in a delightful way.

The rest of the day was a great deal less delightful. The body of a veela had been found, drained of blood. It had transformed into it's winged state before its death. Ron and Grant seemed sure that it was related to Harry and Draco's case, but they wouldn't say why exactly they'd come to that conclusion. At that moment, it was enough to say that the veela had died a gruesome, painful death.

Draco took the news rather badly. He had gone rather pale and needed to sit down. Harry resisted the urge to take the blond into his arms. Kingsley and Robards were there in the office and they needed to be professional. It was so hard though.

The moment Kingsley and Robards stepped out, Ron closed the door. He gave Harry a pointed look, nodding toward Draco. Harry didn't need further encouragement. He rushed to Draco's side, not caring that Robert Grant was still standing there.

"Just give them a minute," Ron told him quietly. Grant nodded mutely.

"Just calm down," Harry said, his heart feeling like it would break when Draco whimpered. Draco was so strong. He rarely showed this sort of weakness in front of anyone but Harry. He was always able to keep his composure until he was in a more private setting.

"Is there anything I can do?" Grant asked quietly. He seemed bothered by Draco's obvious distress.

"Would you bring us some tea?" Harry asked.

"I'll be right back," Grant nodded, stepping out of the room.

"Robert has gone to get tea," Harry said, hugging Draco and pressing kisses to his face. "Just try to calm down. It's alright."

"We're not safe," Draco said shakily. "You know that, right? They're going to come after us. I can feel it."

"Then we'll be ready for them," Harry said firmly, reaching out and cradling Draco's face. "We'll take care of each other like we always do."

Draco nodded, though he didn't look much calmer. Ron thought he looked a bit ill. "Maybe you should go home," Ron suggested.

Draco shook his head. "No. It's best if I stay busy," he decided. "I can't think about this right now." Draco opened a file on his desk, glaring down at the parchment inside. He forced himself to ignore Harry's agitated pacing.

Grant returned with a tray of tea, eyeing Draco in concern. "Thank you," Harry told him, running his fingers over Draco's wings gently.

Harry watched in alarm as Draco prepared a cup of tea, his fingers shaking badly. The cup rattled against the saucer loudly as Draco attempted to steady his hands.

"Alright, let's get out of here," Harry said, carefully tugging the cup from Draco's fingers. "I can't watch you like this."

"Harry..." Draco protested weakly.

"I think Harry's right," Ron said abruptly. He moved closer to hesitantly pat Draco's shoulder. "You'll be no good to anyone like this. Better for you to be relaxed and safe at home." Ron turned to Harry. "I'll come round later and we'll strengthen the wards. Nobody will get into that house."

"Thank you," Harry said, suddenly feeling a bit choked up.

"Don't mention it," Ron replied with a little shrug. "I'll talk to Robards. You take care of him," he said, nodding toward Draco.

"Don't you want your tea?" Grant asked. "It might calm your nerves."

Draco shook his head rapidly. "I think I might be sick," he admitted softly.

Harry frowned and called for Kreacher. With a brief command, the house elf transported then back to the house. Draco groaned, placing one hand on his churning stomach. Harry darted out of the room and returned a moment later with a potion. Draco drank it without question, pressing his lips together tightly.

After a few moments, Draco sighed. "I'm so sorry," he whispered. "I don't know what's gotten into me."

"You're afraid," Harry replied, gathering Draco into his arms. "I am too. Those instincts are there for a reason. The fear is completely justified and I certainly don't blame you for it. I'll keep you safe, just as I know that you'll do the same for me."

"Bloody sap," Draco muttered, though he smiled slightly.

Harry just smiled and led Draco upstairs. More than anything, he just wanted to hold his boyfriend close and soothe away the mounting panic that they both felt.

HPDM~HPDM

Three days later, Draco still wasn't feeling well. His panic had subsided, but he was strangely restless. Harry looked on in bewilderment as Draco rearranged furniture, cleaned and recleaned various surfaces and checked the wards around the house frequently. He would often stop and keep still for several moments with his eyes closed before he would have off Harry's concern and resume his previous activity.

Harry stopped Draco several times a day to make him eat. Draco was having bouts of nausea, but after a potion he had no problem eating whatever Harry put in from of him.

When movie night arrived, Harry was tempted to cancel it. But Draco seemed to want the comfort of the routine, so Harry prepared dinner and encouraged Draco to rest until the other arrived.

Blaise and Pansy arrived first, immediately commenting on how delicious aroma of the food. Pansy disappeared to call Draco down while Blaise set the table. Ron came in as Pansy called for Harry.

Harry hurried up the stairs with Ron on his heels. Pansy meet them in the hallway, wringing her hands. "Something is not right," she announced tensely.

Harry moved past her to find Draco pacing in agitation. His movements were jerky, as if he was unsteady on his feet. Harry's bedding was in disarray as Draco had evidently been struggling to rearrange it.

"Draco?" Harry asked, fear creeping into his tone.

Draco turned to look at Harry with red-rimmed eyes. His face was every more pale than usual. "I'm so dizzy," he whispered, just before his knees buckled.

Harry lurched forward and caught Draco in his arms. "Where's Hermione?" he demanded urgently, turning to look at his friends.

"I don't think she's left work yet," Ron replied.

"Then we're doing to her," Harry said sharply.

He turned and apparated to Hermione's office without another word. Before he could decide where to look for her, the door swung open

Hermione gave a little shriek, not expecting to find someone standing in her office. She felt no relief when she realized it was Harry carrying Draco. She drug them across the hall to an exam room while Harry rattled off the details of the last few days.

Harry found himself being made to wait in Hermione's office while she and another healer examined Draco. Harry tried to keep himself calm but he kept imagining horrific scenarios of Draco, bloody and dying. Before he could work himself into a panic attack, Ron burst through the door looking anxious. The red head took one look at Harry's expression and yanked Harry into a crushing hug. Harry let out a shaky breath, finally feeling his tears break free from his control.

Ron sighed softly when he heard Harry's quiet sob. "It's alright mate. Hermione is good at what she does. She'll set him right," he murmured. He maintained his firm hold until he felt Harry relax.

"Where are the others?" Harry asked, his voice rough.

"They're in the waiting room," Ron replied. "Nobody wants to leave until they know that Malfoy is alright. But, I had a feeling that Hermione would kick you out, so I came to sit with you."

"I don't think I can face a whole waiting room right now," Harry admitted.

"I know that," Ron agreed. "That's why I'm here and the others are out there. We're all just glad to be here for you."

Harry smiled gratefully, sinking into a chair by the desk. Ron sat down as well, content to wait at Harry's side.

They ended up waiting for an hour before a healer stepped in a motioned for them to follow. Harry followed the healer into the exam room, relief rushing through him when he saw that Draco was awake and already looking more healthy. He hurried to the bed, eagerly kissing Draco's hands.

Hermione watched them for a moment as they reached out to stroke each other's wings. Harry's wings were looking ruffled with his obvious distress.

"This is... Complicated," Hermione began cautiously. "Maybe Ron could wait in the hall?"

"It's alright," Draco said, grateful for the consideration. "Weasley can stay. I don't mind." Ron offered him an encouraging smile and Harry relaxed slightly.

"Your magic has adapted to the changes in your DNA," Hermione said. "It seems that..." She paused, biting her lip.

"Mr. Malfoy is pregnant," the other healer said bluntly. Hermione shot him a dirty look.

"That's not possible," Draco denied, his eyes wide. Harry and Ron were staring at the healers in confusion.

"You are a man," Hermione nodded. "But the potion that changed you, evidently made your bird half female."

"Those idiots made me a girl bird?" Draco shrieked indignantly.

Ron wished he could laugh about it. That would be better than the horror that clawed at his mind in that moment. He was rather glad when the second healer excused himself and left the room.

"I'm so sorry," Hermione said anxiously. "We didn't know."

Draco forced himself to draw in a deep breath. "Gender aside," he said, "it shouldn't matter. We haven't..." He looked at Harry with a light blush staining his cheeks.

"Not at all?" Hermione questioned, giving the couple a meaningful look.

"We had... an encounter," Harry admitted, looking thoroughly embarrassed. "Or two. But we didn't... you know."

"Bloody hell," Ron blurted out. "It's not like you're ruddy virgins."

"It's private," Harry objected petulantly.

"Can we focus?" Draco demanded.

"Right," Hermione agreed. "The point is, penetration isn't necessary in this case. Birds mate differently. There are variations between types of birds. But the idea is that the cloacas of the two birds touch. It's very brief but that's all it takes for conception.

Draco's mind replayed the way he had brought Harry to orgasm with his hand, allowing Harry's release to flow over his abdomen. And then Draco had hugged Harry close, pressing their bodies together, apparently allowing their cloacas to touch. Bloody hell.

Harry started laughing. The sound had a slightly hysterical edge to it. He doubled over, shaking his head as chortles spilled out of him.

Ron grasped Harry's shoulders and pulled him upright harshly. It startled Harry out of his manic laughter. "Get it together," Ron commanded sternly.

Harry swallowed hard, nodding. He reached out and gave Draco's hand a reassuring squeeze. "What do we need to know?" he asked Hermione.

Hermione peered at him, as if expecting another bout of hysteria. When she seemed assured of Harry's composure she went on. "Our examination revealed the development of an egg," she explained. "The problem is, your body and magic are adapting to a process that human males aren't capable of. And human embryos take much longer to develop the bird embryos."

"So you don't know what to expect," Harry said flatly.

Hermione sighed. "I can't accurately predict the gestation period," she said. "Once the egg has reached it's full size, it will... come out," she said with a nervous flap of her hands. "After that, we wait for the fetus to finish developing."

She paused, looking distinctly uncomfortable. "There is also termination if you choose to go that route," she informed them. "I only need you to decide. I'll do everything in my power to make this easier for you. I'll give you a few moments. I need to get a few potions." She motioned for Ron to follow her, leaving the stunned couple alone.


	6. Chapter 6

For a moment, the hospital room was silent and tense. Then Draco shook his head. "Everything happens to us," he muttered ruefully. "It's getting ridiculous."

Harry nodded absently, his eyes drawn to Draco's covered abdomen. He briefly wondered if it looked a tiny bit bigger, but he doubted that it would be wise to mention it.

"I'm so sorry Draco," Harry said softly. "I had no idea that you could get pregnant. This is my fault."

"I seem to recall participating," Draco responded, frowning at Harry. "There's no point in blaming yourself."

Harry nodded reluctantly. "So, what do you want to do?" he asked hesitantly. "You've got a choice to make."

Draco bit his lip. "We do," he corrected quietly. "This baby is as much yours as mine."

Harry froze, staring at Draco. Until that moment, Harry had been viewing the situation almost like Draco had an illness. Suddenly, Harry's world shifted and his breath caught in his throat.

"It's my baby," Harry said so softly that Draco had nearly missed it. Harry's eyes were wet and his lips trembled. "It's our baby." He sat on the edge of the bed and hugged Draco close.

Draco buried his face in Harry's neck, letting his tears fall unchecked. He could hardly believe this was happening. It shouldn't have been possible. But bizarre circumstances had thrust them into this unbelievable situation. Now they were faced with a choice that Draco never thought he'd have to make.

Harry pulled away to gently wipe away Draco's tears. "Tell me what you want," Harry said.

"I- I don't-" Draco cut himself off, willing himself not to panic.

Harry hesitantly dropped his hand to rest on Draco's stomach. "I'm here with you," Harry assured him. "I'm not going anywhere. I just want you to be happy. But..." He paused to take in a shaky breath. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't want this."

Draco stared at Harry with wide eyes. Thoughts tumbled through his mind, fighting to gain his focus. After a few moments, Draco placed his hand next to Harry's on his stomach, where their child rested. "So, I guess we're doing this," Draco managed to say with a watery smile.

Harry made a low cooing sound, and kissed Draco softly. Draco wrapped his arms around Harry, suddenly desperate for reassurance and comfort. Draco chirped softly, and Harry responded by pulling Draco into his lap.

Hermione returned to find Harry cradling Draco in his arms. Harry was making a series of chirps, coos and trills, all while nuzzling Draco's cheek. Hermione smiled slightly, clearing her throat to announce her presence. Harry looked over at her and smiled so joyfully that Hermione's heart gave a happy leap.

"We're keeping the baby!" Harry cried excitedly. "Tell us everything we need to know."

HPDM~HPDM

Harry had been allowed to take Draco home that same evening. Hermione had given them potions for nausea and promised to check on Draco daily.

Their other friends had been suitably shocked by the news. But they'd quickly offered their congratulations. Ginny and Pansy were excited about the prospect of buying baby clothes.

Draco was struggling to come to terms with everything. It was a lot to take in. Before being rushed to the hospital, he recalled feeling the compulsion to clean everything and fix his nest. The nests that he and Harry made no longer seemed suitable. He was tired and dizzy, but he couldn't relax because of the damn nest. He now knew that it was his instincts prompting him to nest for his unborn child. But the knowledge didn't make it any less tempting to resume his frenzy from before.

After a few days, Draco finally admitted the source of his agitation. "It's just not right," Draco complained. "And I don't know how to fix it."

Harry nodded in understanding. "Why don't I work on that while Hermione examines you today?" he suggested. He raised a hand to forestall Draco's argument. "I know you can do it, but I would really like for you to relax. Just let me at least try."

Draco nodded his acceptance, earning a loving kiss from Harry. He smiled into the kiss when he felt Harry's hands creep up his shirt to caress his abdomen.

Draco hadn't been certain before, but his stomach had appeared distinctly more rounded that morning. The idea was a bit unnerving, but still exciting. They were going to be announcing the good news to Draco's mother at dinner that evening. They'd decided that she could give Lucius the news herself. It wouldn't go well if Malfoy Senior made a nasty comment.

Luna came over shortly before Hermione arrived. She kissed Draco's cheek before dragging Harry up the stairs. Draco watched them go with a curious frown but contented himself by eating one of the biscuits Harry had made.

Hermione came in half an hour later, dusting herself off and shooting Draco a bright smile. "How are you feeling?" she asked him kindly.

"Fat," Draco admitted, standing up. He ran one hand over his stomach, biting his lip. "Can you see it?"

"I can," Hermione replied with a grin, gently placing her hands on his slightly distended belly. "You're not fat," she chided. "You're growing a person."

"I don't know how women do it," Draco sighed. "I already feel swollen and hideous."

Hermione chuckled. "So dramatic," she remarked fondly. "You've got to grow and allow room for the egg to get bigger. I'll give you some cream to prevent stretch marks. And you look fantastic. Your skin has this glow to it. Once, Harry's more confident that you're perfectly healthy, he won't be able to keep his hands off of you," she added with a wink. She caught sight of Draco's brief hopeful smile and it tugged at her heart.

"Is- Is the baby alright?" he asked hesitantly.

Hermione cast a few spells, humming to herself. Draco remained perfectly still, glad that she was willing to check him over so thoroughly each day. After a moment she smiled. "The baby is fine," she announced. She grinned at Draco's relieved expression and then prepared some tea.

Draco was glad for her company since it was another hour before Luna came downstairs and asked them to come up. Draco exchanged a baffled look with Hermione before getting up and climbing the stairs. Luna gave him a knowing smile and nodded toward Harry's bedroom.

Draco walked into find that Harry's bed was gone. Instead, there was a large nest. Draco could see at the base that it had been constructed out of sticks. There was sage green fabric draped over it and hugging the outer walls. Several pillows in a darker green were scattered inside the nest. Draco stepped closer and pressed against the fabric, finding that it was wonderfully soft and cushioned.

"We used feathers, fabrics and other things to make it soft," Harry explained. "You won't feel the twigs at all."

"It's perfect," Draco breathed.

"Good," Harry smiled, pleased with himself. "I've got your clothes hanging in the closet there with plenty of space for new things. I've got your books on the shelf over there." Harry went on pointing out the new arrangements to the bedroom, not realizing that Draco was starting at him in surprise.

"You didn't need to do this," Draco said. "This is your room."

"It's our room," Harry insisted, reaching out and taking Draco's hands. "You can keep your room if you like, if you'd like time on your own. But, I want to share this room with you." Harry paused, biting his lower lip nervously. "I want this to be your home. Not just you staying here while your father is being an arse."

"Harry you don't need to do this because of the baby," Draco murmured.

"The baby isn't the only reason," Harry insisted. "You've been here for a few months, but... I want it to be official. I want you to make this your home, permanently."

Draco smiled, squeezing Harry's hands. "I won't be needing the other bedroom," he said. "It can be a guest room." He laughed at Harry's excited grin.

"Don't forget about the other surprise," Luna sang cheerfully.

"What else have you done?" Draco asked incredulously.

Harry pulled him down the hall to one of the unused guest rooms. Harry pushed the door open and led Draco inside. Hermione was close behind, peering past them curiously.

Draco stopped and stared in wonder. The walls had been painted to look like a grassy meadow under pale blue sky. The painted grass and flowers seemed to sway a bit in the breeze. A single tree stood in the meadow, holding a next with a yellow bird in it's branches.

A white crib, with looping vines etched into the wood, stood against one wall. There was a mobile attached that had artificial birds hanging from it in pastel colors. A matching bureau rested along another wall and a toy chest sat in the corner.

"At night, the sky get darker and little glowing stars appear," Harry explained, running one finger across the pale blue of the painted sky. "I thought I'd keep the theme gender neutral. Seemed like a good idea."

Draco had no words for that moment. Harry and Luna had set up a nursery, and it was beautiful. Draco really didn't want to cry. He really hated to cry. Stupid hormones.

"You bastard," Draco muttered, turning to press his face to Harry's neck.

"Er..." Harry had no idea what to think of that response.

"You know I hate crying," Draco sniffled.

Oh. Harry sighed, wrapping his arms around Draco's waist. "I'm sorry," Harry murmured. "I was just trying to make you happy."

"Well, tone it down a bit," Draco chuckled, lifting his head to look at Harry. "I don't want my eyes to be red and puffy. Mother will make a fuss."

"Are you happy?" Harry asked softly, brushing away the tears that made their way down Draco's cheeks.

"Very," Draco confirmed, pulling Harry close for a kiss. He sighed as his tongue brushed Harry's, not caring in the slightest that they had an audience. He tilted his head, deepening the kiss slowly, relishing in Harry's quiet moan of pleasure.

Hermione tactfully looked away, admiring the lovely nursery. They'd really done a beautiful job with it.

Luna heard a sound downstairs and went to investigate, returning shortly with Narcissa. "Oh my," Narcissa gasped, looking around at the beautifully decorated nursery.

Harry broke the kiss but kept his arms around Draco. "Nice to see you," Harry said to Narcissa, a faint blush filling his cheeks.

"What's all this?" Narcissa asked, bewildered.

Draco took a deep breath. "Mother, we've discovered that my avian side is...female," he explained awkwardly. "I'm... We're expecting," he said, resting one hand on his stomach.

Narcissa stood gaping at them for a moment, completely stunned. She hardly knew how to process such information. "You're- You- How can this be?" she asked faintly.

Harry and Draco exchanged an anxious look. This wasn't really something that they wished to explain to the Malfoy matriarch.

"Spring is generally the start of mating season," Hermione said helpfully. "The timing was perfect for them to conceive. They just weren't consciously aware of that. Draco's altered anatomy allowed him to get pregnant."

Narcissa nodded slowly. "And when can I expect to meet my grandchild?" she asked.

Hermione shrugged apologetically. "I'll be waiting for when Draco's ready to deliver the egg," she said. "Then we wait again for it to hatch. Our timeline is unknown."

"You're doing to hatch my grandchild?" Narcissa asked incredulously.

"This baby is a hybrid, like us," Harry explained, stroking lovingly over the slight swell of Draco's abdomen. "Apparently, that means hatching like a bird."

Narcissa pursed her lips, considering all the new information. Draco's wings twitched and fluttered as he waited for her response.

Narcissa cleared her throat suddenly and straightened her spine. "Right," she muttered absently to herself. "We'll need to buy Draco some new clothes and supplies for the baby." She looked around the nursery in appraisal. "Is there anything else you'd like for the nursery?"

Draco stepped away from Harry to embrace his mother. She hugged him gently, carefully avoiding his wings. "I know you must be terrified," she said softly. "It'll all be alright." She released him to look him over, smiling slightly at the slight protrusion of his stomach.

"Why don't we go downstairs?" Harry suggested. "I'll make dinner while you visit."

"I have to be going," Hermione responded. "But I'll come round tomorrow." She departed with a little wave.

"I'm off as well," Luna announced.

"Thank you so much for your help," Harry said sincerely.

"Of course Harry," Luna smiled. "I'm so happy for you both." She gave Draco's stomach a gentle pat before taking her leave.

Draco spent the rest of his afternoon in a giddy haze. Harry made a delicious meal while Narcissa prattled on about baby clothes and special warming blankets for the egg. Despite the understandable shock, Narcissa had embraced the idea with enthusiasm. Draco's relief had been profound. It even made it easier for Draco to be excited about the baby.

After Narcissa left, Draco returned to the nursery. The painted sky was dark and glittering with stars. It was hard to believe that there would soon be a baby sleeping in the crib.

Draco hadn't given much thought to having children. He was expected to produce an heir, but it wasn't a pressing issue. His career had taken priority. He was still young after all.

But now, his plans had been changed. It may not have been his choice, but he didn't regret it. He couldn't. Suddenly, Draco couldn't imagine having a child with anyone else. He was looking forward to holding his baby. He was still annoyed that his gender had been tampered with, but he could live with it.

"Daydreaming?" Harry asked stepping into the room.

"A bit," Draco admitted, running his fingers over the railing of the crib. "This is amazing."

"Only the best for my family," Harry said softly. He stroked Draco's soft white feathers, his eyes focused steadily on Draco's face.

"I like the sound of that," Draco said quietly. He leaned close and pressed soft moist kisses down Harry's neck.

Harry sighed, tilting his head to give Draco more room. His hands slipped beneath Draco's shirt to caress bare skin. His breath caught when Draco lapped slowly at his neck before sucking at it gently.

"I love you," Harry murmured, his heart racing.

Draco stilled and then pulled back to meet Harry's gaze. He opened his mouth, but no words came.

"I'm in love with you Draco," Harry said, his voice rough with emotion. "And it's not because of the baby or because of our 'condition'. I want to be with you. Take care of you. No matter what happens, I want to be at your side. I don't give a toss about what anyone else thinks."

Draco stared at him in wonder. All those months ago, he'd decided to give Harry the romance he deserved. But, Harry had done the same in return.

"This is so much better than the movies," Draco said, smiling softly. "I love you so much," he whispered, not even caring that he was on the verge of crying. Again.

Harry pulled Draco into another kiss, too happy for words. His wings fluttered, as if expressing what his words couldn't.

"Make love to me," Draco blurted out, his lips still brushing against Harry's.

Harry swallowed hard. "Are you sure it's safe?" he asked, glancing at Draco's stomach.

"Yes," Draco nodded eagerly, his hands already working Harry's belt open. "I don't want to wait any more."

Harry pulled Draco out of the nursery and into their room. Draco gasped when Harry pressed him into the wall, gently pinning the lovely white wings. It felt a little odd, but it didn't hurt so Draco relaxed into Harry's hold.

Harry took his time removing Draco's clothes. Draco was far less patient. He swiftly removed Harry's trousers and yanked the shirt off before kissing down Harry's chest.

Harry groaned, urging Draco toward their new nest. The rest of their clothing was tossed aside and the climbed in, pressing their bodies together.

Draco hummed as Harry kissed down his throat. "Is this weird?" Draco asked suddenly.

Harry paused. "Me and you? Or the idea of two men shagging in a giant bird nest?" Harry questioned with a snort, nibbling Draco's earlobe.

"The second one," Draco responded, grinding his erection against Harry's.

"Definitely," Harry nodded, pushing Draco back to relax against the wall of the nest. He lowered himself between Draco's thighs and swallowed his cock eagerly. His fingers were lubed up and he began working them into Draco's opening gently.

Draco moaned, tilting his head back and closing his eyes. It felt so very good. For a moment, it occurred to Draco that Harry had clearly had practice with this particular activity, and the idea made Draco rather jealous. He didn't like the idea of Harry with anyone else.

It was a bit silly to worry about that though. Draco had other lovers in the past, and they were completely irrelevant now. Harry was what mattered. Harry and the life that they'd stumbled into.

"You still with me?" Harry asked, lifting his head to meet Draco's gaze. His fingers were still gently thrusting into Draco, carefully stretching him. "What are you thinking about?"

"I may have been thinking about your past sexual encounters," Draco admitted.

"Not a happy thought," Harry mused. He carefully withdrew his fingers and moved to lean over Draco. "I haven't been with any one for nearly a year. And nobody has meant even half as much to me as you do." He pressed a sweet kiss to Draco's forehead before bringing their lips together.

Draco sat up and guided Harry to sit with his back to the side of the nest. Then he straddled Harry's thighs, running his fingers over Harry's torso.

"Are you still feeling up to this?" Harry asked breathlessly. He moaned loudly when Draco slowly slid down onto his cock.

"How's that for an answer?" Draco asked, giving his hips a slow, exaggerated roll.

"Oh Merlin," Harry gasped. He grasped Draco's hips and panted as Draco lifted himself slowly before sinking back down.

The stretch burned a bit, but the pleasure was exquisite. Draco felt delightfully full and his cock was rubbing against Harry's abdomen with every move they made. He kissed Harry urgently, his tongue sliding along Harry's messily.

Harry coaxed Draco to lean back, allowing Harry to suck at Draco's nipples while Draco continued to roll his hips. Draco was nearly incoherent with pleasure. Harry pulled him upright, wrapping one hand around Draco's cock.

Draco came hard, gasping for breath as he rode out his orgasm. His wings trembled around him. Harry followed him into bliss, his own wings flaring out wide.

Harry gently shiftex Draco and laid him down. He cleaned them off with a few spells, combing his fingers through Draco's hair. "Are you alright?" Harry asked.

"Exhausted," Draco answered with a yawn. He pulled Harry down to rest next to him. "You're a brilliant shag Harry Potter."

Harry laughed. "I'm glad you think so," he remarked. He sighed softly brushing his fingertips down Draco's cheek. "You're home, you're safe and carrying our child," he murmured. "I don't think I've ever been so happy."

Draco smiled before his expression turned thoughtful. "Do you think you'd have ever wanted to be with me if this hadn't happened to us?" he asked quietly, his wings rustling slightly.

Harry hummed softly, considering. "I think we'd have gotten there," he said slowly. "To be honest, I was physically attracted to you before. Our transformation just made it easier to get closer to you." He kissed Draco's palm softly. "I think there's a good chance that we were always going to wind up together. That day with the polyjuice... watching you touch my body..."

"It's a nice body," Draco shrugged with a mischievous grin.

Harry snorted. "And I got caught fondling your nipples," he added.

Draco laughed in delight. "Oh Merlin, Weasley's face!" he choked out, shaking with mirth.

Harry watched Draco, admiring the sound of his laugh and how lovely his smile was. Draco was beautiful, with or without wings, and Harry suddenly felt ridiculously, stupidly lucky. He pulled Draco closer, their naked bodies pressing together.

Draco's giggles trailed off and he nuzzled Harry's neck. "I love you," he sighed contentedly.

"I love you too," Harry responded, closing his eyes.


	7. Chapter 7

Harry watched in fascination as Draco ate a slice of treacle tart. The blonde was perched on a bar stool by the kitchen counter, humming in pleasure as he licked his spoon.

It wasn't the eating itself that had Harry so enthralled though. In just under two month's time, Draco's abdomen had enlarged impressively. He looked to be at least eight months pregnant.

It had been discovered quite quickly that Draco would need to eat a lot more. The egg was absorbing a shocking amount of nutrients, presumably to be able to sustain the baby until it was time to hatch. As a result, Draco ate much more frequently in addition to nutrient potions. Harry was amazed by everything that Draco consumed each day, but he'd rather hex himself than ever comment on it in Draco's presence. Harry liked his bits where they were, thank you very much.

"Stop staring," Draco muttered self-consciously, setting the spoon on his empty plate.

"I like to watch you," Harry responded, cleaning the plate and fork with a spell. He leaned close to kiss Draco's lips. "You look so beautiful."

Draco snorted. "I look ridiculous," he retorted, resting his hands against his belly with a sigh.

"You're gorgeous," Harry insisted. "I love this," he added, lovingly caressing the swell of his lover's abdomen.

Draco sighed, closing his eyes and letting Harry's gentle hands soothe him. Despite Draco's discomfort with his rapidly expanding waistline, Harry made him feel sexy and desired. They made love frequently and Harry eagerly worshiped every inch of Draco's body.

Harry had begun laying warm, wet kisses against Draco's neck, intending to coax Draco into letting Harry suck his cock right there in the kitchen, when Ron walked in carrying shopping bags. "Hey Ron," Harry grumbled.

Ron halted at the tone and shot Harry a curious look. He rolled his eyes when he noticed Harry's very obvious erection. "Mate, put that away when you've got company," he said with a smirk.

Harry flushed turning to hide his groin from Ron while Draco laughed. "I'll take care of that later," he told Harry helpfully, not bothering to lower his voice. He snorted when Ron shuddered. Harry grinned sheepishly and kissed Draco's lips sweetly.

Ron went about putting the shopping away, humming to himself. He'd been asked to be the baby's godfather and he was humbled by the request. It was such an honor and Draco had agreed instantly when Harry suggested it. Ron was so grateful and rather eager to help whenever he could. Draco was no longer leaving the house, and Harry rarely ventured out. So, Ron brought their favorite foods over along with books and new movies. He'd enlisted Pansy's help in getting new clothes for Draco. Draco's wardrobe could have been magically altered, but he'd enjoyed getting new clothes so Harry had happily provided whatever funds were needed to pamper Draco.

"Are you sure you feel up to movie night?" Ron asked, eyeing Draco in speculation.

"You think I'm too fat to socialize?" Draco suggested, folding his arms over his chest irritably.

"Don't be daft," Ron waved him off. "You look great. But I know that you're tired and uncomfortable."

Draco's jaw went slack momentarily. It was always a bit surprising for Ron to compliment him. And Ron generally wouldn't comment on his appearance, especially since Harry was already very generous in his praise of Draco's looks.

"I- Thank you," Draco said softly. He marvelled at Ron's knowing gaze as the red-head smiled slightly.

"Spaghetti sound alright?" Ron asked Draco. "Or would you like something else?"

"You don't have to cook Ron," Harry protested. "I can do that."

Ron shooed Harry away as he reached to take the bag of ingredients. "But you won't be cooking this time," Ron said firmly. "Draco is due any time now. You're going to focus on him while I do this. Besides, Pansy will be helping me," he added nonchalantly, though his reddening ears were a bit telling.

Draco leaned forward eagerly. "I knew that bitch wasn't telling me something," he said. "She knows that I live for gossip right now since I can't go anywhere. So cough it up," he commanded. "Are you shagging her?"

"No," Ron denied, his face flushed.

"But you're going to," Draco pushed, raising his eyebrows expectantly.

"Well... I'd need her consent obviously," he stammered, flustered. He shot Harry a dirty look for laughing.

"Don't be stupid. Of course she'd consent," Draco snorted. "We're lucky she hasn't molested you in front of everyone. Not that she's whorish or anything," Draco added, catching Ron's expression of consternation.

"You called her a whore just yesterday," Harry mentioned, pouring a glass of pumpkin juice for Draco.

"That's because she's a stupid bint and I hate her sometimes," Draco replied with a sniff.

Ron burst into a fit of laughter, his anxiety forgotten. Harry handed Draco the pumpkin juice with a wink and a grin. He loved that Ron and Draco were so accepting of each other.

"You're hilarious when you're bitchy," Ron chortled. "Please tell me that you two plan to have more children. I think I prefer you pregnant," he joked.

Draco's laugh died abruptly in his throat and his gaze darted to Harry's face. They hadn't talked about that. Draco's pregnancy had been an accident, regardless of how they now felt about it. To deliberately have more children...

"I'd love that," Harry said, his smile softening. "We'll wait a bit of course, but if you're willing..." He trailed off, stroking against Draco's abdomen lovingly.

Draco grasped the front of Harry's shirt and yanked him into a fervent kiss. Sure they were living together and loved each other. But, making plans to further expand their family... It made it all seem... bigger. More life altering. It was important and Draco had no idea how to express how much more deeply he'd fallen in love at that moment.

Stupid hormones.

"Don't cry Baby," Harry cooed, kissing Draco's tears away.

"It's Ron's fault," Draco blurted out with a sob.

"Er..." Ron looked around for a moment and then snatched one of the bags from the floor. "Chips?" he offered hastily. He'd stopped at a deli earlier and ordered chips for Draco, using charms to keep them fresh and warm.

"Terribly unhealthy," Draco muttered, though he reached into the styrofoam container anyway.

"That's just to make you feel better," Ron said, relieved when Draco bit into a chip. "Dinner will be healthier."

"Are you making my patient cry?" Hermione asked, startling them. They hadn't heard her come in.

"I didn't mean to," Ron protested. "And I made him feel better," he added, pointing to the container of warm, salty chips.

"That's not healthy," Hermione frowned.

"They're potatoes," Draco mumbled around a mouthful, pulling the container out of her reach. Harry kissed his temple, chuckling.

Hermione relented with an indulgent smile. "Fine. Let's get you looked at before the others get here."

Draco hummed his agreement, allowing Harry to help him stand. He threw one of the chips at Ron as he passed.

In the living room, Draco lifted his shirt and rolled down the elastic band of his trousers while Harry held his chips. The skin of Draco's abdomen was smooth and unblemished thanks to the salves he'd been using, but it looked tight. His cloaca was slightly puffy while his navel had gone completely flat.

Hermione pressed on his stomach carefully, her hands drifting over the skin slowly. "I think you're ready," she said. "It feels really firm today. I'd guess as early as tonight. Maybe tomorrow."

Draco pulled in a shaky breath. The outside of the egg had been relatively flexible and soft as it took in nutrients. Now that the shell had hardened...

"I don't want to lay an egg," Draco pouted, wringing his hands while his wings fluttered.

Harry nearly laughed but he stopped himself. "It'll be fine, darling," he said, squeezing his love's hand tenderly.

"Then you do it," Draco retorted petulantly.

"Just calm down," Hermione said. "Harry will alert me immediately when it's time. I'm leaving a few things here that I'll need. We'll make it as painless as possible." She lifted her wand and cast several spells, checking Draco's vitals. After several moments, she nodded, looking pleased.

"You've done a great job," she praised Draco. "You're remarkable healthy. Well hydrated. Your weight is good."

Draco adjusted his clothing with a sigh of relief. Any time now, he'd be pushing a huge egg out of his body. If the experience was as horrible as it sounded they probably wouldn't be having any more children. Harry would just have to be content with one.

The others arrived a short time later, carrying gifts. They knew that it wouldn't be long, so they thought they'd celebrate with Harry and Draco.

"You didn't need to do all this," Harry said, watching Neville and Blaise carefully stack the gifts on the coffee table.

"We wanted to," Ginny said. "This is a big deal."

"We'll still have to wait for the hatching," Draco pointed out.

"And then we'll celebrate again," Pansy declared. "Honestly, if we want to throw you a party, let us do it. I'm going to help with dinner," she said, gliding out of the room with a wink at Draco.

"I told you she's a whore," Draco commented, while Harry laughed.

"What a thing to say about your friend."

Draco turned at the sound of his mother's voice and froze when he saw his father standing beside her, holding a package wrapped in silver paper. He hadn't seen his father since they'd had dinner together. The night Draco had conceived actually. Part of him was upset enough to let his father in on that bit of news, but he resisted. Instead, he held still while his father looked him over with wide eyes.

"You look wonderful my darling," Narcissa said fondly. "How are you feeling?"

"Massive," Draco replied with a weary little chuckle.

"He looks amazing," Ginny commented. "Leave it to Draco to still look disgustingly gorgeous at the end of pregnancy."

"Bastard," Blaise muttered, though he winked teasingly. Draco smirked.

"Would everyone like tea?" Harry offered.

"I'll do that," Hermione chided. "You and Draco relax."

Draco and Harry were left to enjoy their company while food and hospitality were managed by their friends. Lucius managed to make polite conversation with his son, his gaze continuously drifting to Draco's stomach.

Dinner was delicious and conversation remained light and pleasant. It was when a lovely chocolate cake was presented that Harry announced the findings of Draco's exam.

"The shell feels solid," Harry said proudly. "So it'll be soon."

"Possibly tonight," Draco added with a nervous little smile.

Pansy squealed in excitement. "That's wonderful!" she enthused. "I need to go get some things so I can spend the night."

"What the hell for?" Blaise asked.

"I have to be here when the egg comes," Pansy insisted.

"No you don't," Draco responded with an eye roll. "It's not your baby."

"Please," Ron scoffed. "I've got news for you mate. It's everybody's baby," he said waving his hand to indicate everyone at the table.

Harry chuckled, kissing Draco's temple. "We'll have the most loved baby in England," he murmured.

"In the world," Neville corrected with a grin.

"Fine," Draco said waving his hand dismissively. "But this isn't a muggle hotel. You can't all stay here."

"We'll inform you straight away," Harry assured everyone. "We'd like the event itself to be a bit more private."

"Event," Draco snorted, shaking his head and rubbing his stomach. "Like it's the Triwizard Tournament."

Once the cake had been eaten, Draco sat down to open the gifts. He was stunned by the level of enthusiasm that was displayed. He opened several packages of baby socks and gender neutral rompers. There were baby blankets and teddy bears and other little toys.

Luna had given them a large box that contained a smaller version of Harry and Draco's nest. "It's charmed to maintain its shape so you can keep the egg close by," Luna explained. "If you come downstairs or go to a friend's house, bring the nest."

"That goes well with this," Narcissa said, handing Draco a squishy package in silver paper. He opened it to find a pale green blanket that was pleasantly soft and warm. "It mimics your body heat," Narcissa explained. "When you're not holding your egg, this blanket will keep it appropriately warm."

"Thank you," Harry said sincerely while Draco ran his fingers over the fabric thoughtfully.

"Well, your father wanted to purchase a full wardrobe," Narcissa said lightly. "But I thought it might be prudent to wait until we knew what the baby will be. Gender is a factor as well as whether or not the baby will also have wings, though I suspect that it will."

"So, you can expect a proper wardrobe as soon as we know for certain," Lucius added, looking uncomfortable but determined.

Draco gave a little huff, looking down. "I swear, if anyone else makes me cry today, I'm going to kill everyone," he growled.

Harry bit down hard on lip to prevent himself from laughing. He wordlessly handed Draco another present to unwrap, glancing up briefly to wink at Narcissa. She shook her head in amusement.

HPDM~HPDM

Harry sighed in relief as everyone began leaving. Only Ron remained, carrying the gifts upstairs and setting them neatly in the nursery. When he was done, he came back downstairs to see Draco standing with his hands pressed against the wall. Harry was standing behind him, rubbing his lower back with an anxious expression.

"Will you stay?" Harry asked, looking at Ron hopefully.

"Of course," Ron nodded.

"What?" Draco asked, turning around. "Why?"

"When the time comes, I'm not leaving your side," Harry said firmly. "I'll need someone to get Hermione. And..." He shifted his weight from foot to foot. "I'm having trouble staying calm. I need to be strong for you, and having my best mate here might help."

Draco frowned, hugging Harry carefully. "If that's what you need," Draco agreed. He glanced at Ron. "We appreciate your help."

"No problem," Ron responded with a little shrug. "I sort of had a feeling, so I popped out to talk to Kingsley while you lot were chatting. He and Robards are going to cover for me with Grant."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"Grant doesn't know," Ron said, nodded pointedly at Draco. "I let him think that you two decided to take a step back during the investigation. Draco was pretty rattled the last time you two were at the office, and Grant saw that. Seems like a good cover story. There's too much at stake here. I'm not going to risk three lives by taking an unnecessary risk. I trust Kingsley completely, and he vouches for Robards. Nobody else knows."

"That can't be easy," Harry commented. "Keeping such important information from your partner."

"It makes the investigation difficult," Ron agreed. "I can't be open with what I know, so he doesn't have all the facts. But, so it goes. You three are my priority. Now, I'm going to sleep. Use a silencing charm while you're... whatever," he said wrinkling his nose. "But cancel it when you're done. I want to be able to hear you if you need me."

Harry agreed, his cheeks growing pink at Ron's suggestion. Draco laughed at him all the way up the stairs.

"Well you heard the man," Draco said once Harry had closed their bedroom door. "Put up a silencing charm and get to work." He began pulling his clothes off unhurriedly while Harry blinked in surprise.

"I thought you'd want to rest," Harry said. "I know your back hurts."

"It does," Draco agreed. "But, I've been wanting your hands and mouth on me since Ron interrupted us in the kitchen earlier. Surely you won't deny me." He shot Harry an expectant look as he climbed into their nest, completely naked.

"No, but..." Harry cast a quick spell, looking uncertain. "I don't want to risk damaging the egg."

"That's why you're going to be very, very gentle with me," Draco said with a grin. His eyes followed Harry's every move as Harry disrobed.

Harry climbed into the nest, his wings flapping slowly behind him. He kissed Draco softly, sliding his tongue into his lover's mouth. He pulled back, his hands trailing down Draco's neck in a gentle caress. "Tell me what you want," Harry whispered. "I'll do anything you want."

"Oh good," Draco chuckled. "Then sit on your knees right here." He patted a spot next to him, shifting to lay on his side.

Harry did as requested, wondering what Draco was up to. He moaned when Draco leaned forward, slowly taking Harry's cock into his mouth.

Draco pulled off, looking up at Harry with a heated gaze. "Touch me," Draco commanded before swallowing Harry's cock again with a loud groan.

Harry reached down and grasped Draco's erection with one hand, stroking him in long slow strokes. His other hand rested in Draco's hair, gently massaging his lover's scalp with his fingertips. He was so turned on and Draco seemed to be feeling rather restless.

Harry pulled back, soothing Draco with a little chirp before maneuvering around Draco's legs to get behind him. Draco relaxed, content to watch while Harry grabbed pillows and used them to support Draco's back and hips. Once he was sure Draco was comfortable, Harry grabbed their bottle of lubricant.

"Thank Merlin," Draco groaned as he felt Harry's cool, slippery fingers breach him. "I was afraid I'd have to beg."

Harry chuckled, carefully stretching Draco for long moments. And then Draco did beg.

"Please Harry," Draco whimpered. "I'm ready. I want you now." His breath caught as felt the pressure of Harry's erection pressing into him. "Hurry Harry. Fill me up," he pleaded with a moan.

Harry shuddered at the tight heat, loving all the desperate sounds Draco made. Harry had remained kneeling on his knees, one hand grasping Draco's hip while the other brushed gently over Draco's stomach. He rolled his hips slowly and carefully, panting softly while Draco moaned shamelessly. Harry's hand drifted to Draco's cock, stroking it languidly as his hips rolled into Draco. Draco pushed back into Harry's thrusts helpfully, his mouth trembling open on a shuddering sigh.

Despite the slow, gentle pace, it wasn't long before they both climaxed. Harry carefully pulled out and cleaned them both up with charms before cuddling against Draco sleepily. Draco fell asleep almost instantly, his face completely relaxed for the first time all day. Harry flicked his wand lazily, cancelling the silencing charm and then dozed off happily.

HPDM~HPDM

It wasn't until after they'd had a late breakfast that Draco announced that it was time. The announcement came in the form of a sharp cry of mingled pain and fear.

"I'll get Hermione," Ron said hastily. "Get Draco upstairs."

Harry swept Draco into his arms without a second thought, hurrying up the stairs and to their bedroom. Draco rested on his side, shivering violently as his hands rubbed at the front of his stomach gently.

Harry was frantic. He wanted to scream and throw things to relieve some of the tension pooling in his stomach. His wings never stopped moveing. They flapped, fluttered and trembled even while Harry forced himself to sit at Draco's side.

Hermione bolted into the room with Ron at her heels. "Alright Draco, let's get through this together," she said with a calmness that Harry didn't believe for a second. But, the act seemed to fool Draco as he drew in a steadying breath. "Get up on your knees. We're going to use gravity to help you out."

Draco's shirt was removed and he positioned himself on his hands and knees. Hermione coated her palms with a salve and reached for Draco's stomach. "This will help numb you a little and allow your cloaca to stretch wide enough to release the egg without tearing you open," she explained.

Harry climbed into the nest behind Draco. He reached for Draco's trembling wings, running his fingers over the feathers carefully. Hermione game him a quick encouaging nod before her eyes returned to Draco.

Ron watched anxiously as Hermione coaxed Draco into pushing the egg out. Ron was actually in the perfect position to watch it happen. The rounded edge of a pale bluish shell emerged from the straining flesh of the cloaca. Draco let out a sob, triggering a sob from Harry. Hermione's eyes were damp, but she kept up her encouragement and carefully rubbing the salve around Draco's tortured flesh.

Ron moved closer with a nod from Hermione, climbing into the nest next to Draco. He reached underneath and cupped the egg as it finally came out completely. He pulled it to his chest, cradling it in his arms as Draco collapsed on his side.

"Keep the egg warm while I get Draco closed up," Hermione said, not bothering to look up.

Harry lowered himself to press against Draco's side, weeping. Draco was lying limply, his breath coming in shuddering pants.

Ron looked down at the pale blue egg in his arms. He could cradle it in one arm. It was quite large for an egg, but seemed a little small for a baby. Though he assumed the baby would be all curled up, like in a mother's womb. The egg was fairly light for it's size, as the baby was tiny. Soon, the baby would grow to fill the inside of the egg.

His godchild. The thought brought a joyful smile to Ron's face. There was some unknown fluid smeared onto his shirt and hands from holding the egg, but he really didn't care. "Let's get you cleaned up," he murmured, sitting down on the floor and summoning a soft towel. He cradled the egg in his left arm while carefully wiping it clean.

Hermione sighed, admiring her work. Draco's cloaca and abdomen were returning to normal. Draco was very tired but a pain potion was keeping him comfortable. He'd likely be sore for a few days. Harry was shaking and looking traumatized.

Ron got up and carried the now clean egg to the nest. Draco's eyes lit up despite his fatigue. "Come get on this side Harry," Ron instructed.

Harry did as he was told, coming to rest so he was facing Draco. Once he was settled, Ron leaned over and carefully placed the egg between them. He exchanged a grin with Hermione as the couple stared in awe.

"This beautiful egg caused that much pain," Draco murmured, his fingers stroking the shell lightly.

"It's perfect," Harry said softly. He met Draco's gaze. "I love you."

"I love you too," Draco replied, supressing a yawn.

"Would you like for us to wait to notify the others?" Hermione asked.

"No," Draco sighed. "Better to get it over with. Can you just... I don't want anyone touching it. You two are fine," he added glancing between Ron and Hermione, "but I'd like everyone else to... "

"Understood," Ron said. "I'll make sure they know."

"Thank you," Harry said quietly.

Ron left to make some floo calls while Hermione began casting spells to clean up the nest. Draco remained perfectly still, starting at the egg while Harry's adoring gaze shifted between the egg and Draco.

Their friends came in and quietly admired the new egg. Draco fell asleep in the reverent silence, one arm cradling the egg and his head resting on Harry's outstretched arm.

Narcissa and Lucius watched over the sleeping family while Hermione left to get something to eat and change her clothes. "This just became very real," Lucius muttered quietly.

Narcissa sighed. "The wings weren't real enough for you?" she asked impatiently.

"They are grown men that were subjected to a potion," Lucius retorted. "But that egg holds a baby. Our helpless, blameless grandchild. It doesn't deserve to suffer or struggle because of its blood," he added quietly.

Narcissa patted her husband's knee. "We can't stop life from being hard," she said. "We can only be loving and supportive. Draco and Harry will be wonderful parents and their child is already adored."

They fell silent as Draco stirred and opened his eyes. His movement woke Harry as well.

"How are you darling?" Narcissa asked.

"A little sore," Draco admitted. "But nothing serious. It was completely worth it," he added, smiling as he watched Harry nuzzle the egg blissfully.

"Congratulations son," Lucius said with a little nod. "We do have a matter of importance to discuss."

"Alright," Draco said cautiously. He sat up and gently scooped the egg up to cradle it to his chest. Harry sat up as well, guiding Draco to lean again him.

Lucius cleared his throat and stood up, looking regal and somber. Narcissa's eyes followed him warily.

Lucius fixed Harry with a stern gaze. "Do you intend to marry my son?" he demanded.

Harry's mouth fell open in surprise and Draco made an odd choking sound.

"Lucius!" Narcissa snapped.

Lucius waved her off. "Potter cannot simply go about inserting his penis wherever he pleases," he said, ignoring his son's horrified blush, "and impregnating my son without taking responsibility."

A loud snort of laughter from the doorway, momentarily distracted them. Ron was leaning against the wall, grinning wickedly. "Don't mind me," Ron said, nodding to Lucius. "I'm all for responsible parenting. Carry on good sir!" he declared, winking when Narcissa spluttered at him.

At that, Lucius turned to the couple in the nest looking smug.

Draco huffed in annoyance. "First of all," he began, ignoring the anxious little groan Harry made, "Penis insertion was not involved in the conception." Harry choked. "I can easily explain how it happened. I remember quite well. That night was so... erotic. And sticky," he added with a wicked smirk.

Ron lost it and erupted into a fit of childish giggles. Harry hid his face in hands. Lucius looked confused and horrified.

"Draco Lucius Malfoy!" Narcissa cried. "It is crude and undignified to speak of such things. It's meant to be private."

"Oh please," Draco scoffed. "Father started it. Talking about Harry 'inserting his penis' as if it's any of his concern."

"You are my son!" Lucius insisted firmly. "It is my concern."

"Then you can be concerned about the fact that I made Harry come all over my stomach," Draco snapped.

"He doesn't need to know exactly how we went about it," Harry blurted out, resurfacing in a desperate attempt to diffuse the situation.

"And I loved it!" Draco hissed viciously, his gaze triumphant as his father paled.

"Oh my god..." Ron giggled weakly, sinking to the floor.

It was completely ridiculous and totally out of hand. How did one come back from this? Narcissa looked stunned and embarrassed. Lucius looked like he wanted to Avada himself. Ron was probably on the verge of pissing himself.

"I want to get married!"

Ron choked on his laugh, lifting his head to look at Harry. Draco was staring at Harry with wide, shocked eyes. Narcissa and Lucius looked bewildered but hopeful.

"What?" Draco squeaked.

"Just because your father brought it up in such a tacky manner doesn't mean it's not a good idea," Harry said, flapping his hand at Lucius when the man sputtered indignantly.

"Harry..." Draco began.

"I want to," Harry insisted. "You know that I love you. Our baby will be here soon. The only thing that would make me happier is for you to be my husband." Harry turned to face Draco, ignoring the others in the room. "Draco, will you-"

"Harry Potter, if you propose right after that ridiculous conversation, I will castrate you," Draco threatened.

"But-"

"No," Draco said firmly. "You will select a more appropriate moment for this. And it had better be disgustingly romantic."

Harry look of dismay melted into a besotted smile. "Of course," he agreed quietly. "You deserve the best, so that's what you'll get."

Appeased, Draco kissed Harry sweetly, mindful of the egg he was holding. He smiled as Harry held out his own arms hopefully. The egg was lovingly transferred to Harry's embrace and Harry settled against the side of the nest, cooing softly to their unborn child.

"Happy now?" Draco asked his father with a smirk.

"I'm not sure that's an accurate description of this emotion," Lucius muttered, looking flustered.

"Tramatized maybe," Ron put in helpfully.

"That's the one," Lucius agreed warily. He rolled his eyes when Ron started laughing again.


	8. Chapter 8

Ron heaved a sigh of relief as he finished up the report he was working on and set it aside. It had been a long day and he was looking forward to leaving.

He'd been bombarded with questions when he'd gotten to work that morning. Grant had expressed concern over his two day absence. He'd stopped by Ron's flat to check on him, but had found it empty. Ron had brushed the concern away claiming that he'd been at his mother's house. Ron felt a little stupid for using that excuse, since he was a grown man capable of caring for himself through a non-lethal illness. But, he couldn't exactly say that he'd been with Harry and Draco while they'd had their egg. He'd

Of course, Grant had later asked about the couple later on in the day. Ron really hated to be dishonest with his partner. The relationship between auror partners was important. They had to rely on one another and trust was essential. But Ron had shrugged off his guilt and assured Grant that the couple was simply waiting out the mysterious dark wizards.

"Hey, I feel bad that Potter and Malfoy are too afraid to leave the house," Grant said with a friown. "They do fantastic work and this was just rotten luck."

"I know," Ron agreed. "It's a bloody shame."

"Listen, I know Malfoy was having a hard time," Grant went on. "I've got this tea that my mum used to give me. Really calms the nerves and it tastes great. Would you pass it on? Tell them that I look forward to having them back?" he added, holding out a blue metal tin.

Ron smiled. Grant was really a good bloke. It made Ron feel even worse. "Sure," he agreed cheerfully. "I'm sure Harry at least will appreciate it. Malfoy is driving him batty." Even more lies. For a moment, Ron wanted to kick himself.

Ron bid his partner a good night and then apparated away. He arrived in Harry's living room and made his way to the kitchen, following the scent of garlic. He quickly found himself at wand point.

Harry dropped his wand arm in relief. "Sorry," he murmured sheepishly. "I felt something come through the wards. Didn't realize it was you."

Ron nodded in understanding as Harry returned to cooking. Ron smiled when he saw Draco leaning against the counter, holding the egg, carefully swaddled in a blanket, close to his chest. "Does that egg ever spend any time in its nest?" Ron questioned.

"Not so far," Harry replied with a grin.

"I just had it," Draco protested, blushing. "I can't help it."

"I'm only joking," Ron assured him, setting the blue tin on the counter and holding his arms out. He was delighted when Draco passed the egg without hesitation. "I'll hold this little darling while you eat something."

"You staying for dinner?" Draco asked taking a bite of warm bread. "Harry's making tortellini, garlic gread and a salad."

"Sure," Ron agreed. "Beats getting a Chinese takeaway again."

Draco groaned. "God I'd kill for a pork eggroll," he muttered.

Ron snorted. "Am I picking up Chinese tomorrow then?" he asked.

Draco bit his lip, shooting Harry a hopeful look. Harry grinned. He'd had a difficult time denying Draco anything before, but now that he'd witnessed his lover carrying and then birthing their egg... Draco pretty much got whatever he wanted. "Would you like that?" Harry asked, leaning close to press a warm kiss just behind Draco's ear.

"Maybe," Draco hedged. He felt a bit self-conscious about his appetite. Hermione had assured him that would take a little time for him to feel normal. His body was replenishing after spending two months redirecting most of its nutrients to the egg. Without the bulk of the egg, it was obvious that Draco was thinner than was normal for him.

"Love, it's fine," Harry said. "You look a bit peaky, but it'll pass. You've got to eat more and we'll get you flying again. You'll be good as new in no time."

"Absolutely," Ron agreed. "You've got to be in top form for this one," he added, nodding at the egg in his arms. "Tomorrow I'll bring eggrolls, lo mein... Make me a list and I'll bring whatever you like. If you want to invite or friends and make it a party, we can do that too."

"I think... Maybe just us tomorrow," Draco said. "I'm having a difficult time with the concept of setting the egg down. The thought of having the house full of people is... unpleasant. Perhaps we can wait until the next movie night?"

"That's fine too," Ron replied with a little shrug. "We'll do what makes you feel better. If it turns out that movie day is too much, we can push that back too. I explained to the others. They're not upset."

"That's good," Draco said quietly, shifting closer to Ron and looking down at the egg.

Ron helpfully tugged the blanket aside to expose the blue shell to Draco. "Do you want it back?" he asked.

"Er- No, it's fine," Draco responded. "I- Being able to see it makes me feel better," he admitted softly.

Harry looked back at Draco with a loving smile and Ron nodded in understanding. "Seriously, I get it," Ron assured the blond. "I'm just glad that you're allowing me to help. I get to hold the egg and hang around here. It's an honor really. It's not a bother to cater to your needs."

Draco relaxed a little, smiling slightly. He would have never guessed that he'd one day be rather fond of Ron Weasley. But the last several months had permanently altered his opinion of the red-head. Ron was protective of Harry and Draco even though he hadn't like Draco. He'd quietly supported their budding relationship because he'd wanted Harry to be happy. When they'd discovered the pregnancy, Ron had calmly set about making sure that Draco would be safe and comfortable. He might have originally been motivated by his love for Harry, but it had quickly turned into a genuine care for Draco. And though their child was still ensconced in an egg, Ron gleefully accepted his roll as godfather. Outside of Harry and Draco, only Ron had so far been privileged enough to hold the egg.

"I appreciate it," Draco said lightly, reaching out to stroke the eggshell with delicate, loving fingers. He glanced away and spotted the blue tin on the counter. "What's this then?" he asked.

"Oh right! Grant wanted me to bring that too you," Ron explained. "He was telling me that he feels badly you two are stuck here. He said that tea would help calm your nerves and relax you."

"That was thoughtful," Draco murmured, looking over the tin. "Fancy a cup?" he asked, looking between Harry and Ron.

"That would be great Love," Harry said, adding more garlic to his tomato sauce.

Draco boiled some water with a spell and added it the teapot before grabbing an infuser to put the tea leaves in. He opened the tin and sniffed at the contents. He frowned and took another sniff, inhaling more deeply. He slapped the lid back on and slammed the tin onto the counter with a look of horror.

"What?" Harry cried in alarm, is wooden spoon clattering to the floor and splattering tomato sauce across the tile.

"Belladonna," Draco croaked, his hands shaking. "There's belladonna mixed into that tea. And..." He picked the tin back up and cracked the lid to take another cautious whiff. "A bit of aconite as well."

"It's poisoned," Harry blurted out unnecessarily, pulling Draco into his embrace. His green eyes darted to Ron's horrified expression. "Grant gave you that?" he demanded.

"Yeah, he-" Ron's expression darkened. "I'll kill him," he growled.

"Why?" Draco asked, his eyes on the blue tin. "Why would he try to kill us?"

"Thank Merlin you love the smell of tea," Harry whispered, cupping Draco's face and kissing him softly. "If you hadn't checked, we might not have noticed until it was too late." Draco chirped softly in distress, wrapping his arms around Harry's waist.

For a moment they stood in silence, staring at the tin of poisoned tea. Despite keeping Draco's pregnancy a secret, they'd all trusted Grant. He'd been Ron's partner for nearly two years. He'd been working with them on the case that had transformed Harry and Draco.

"I'm so sorry," Ron said softly, his voice breaking. "I never thought... I had no idea that he'd do something like this."

"You couldn't have known," Draco told him. "It's not your fault."

Ron nodded, but he looked miserable.

"So... are we thinking this was the Imperius curse?" Harry asked. "Or- Wait..." He cut himself off, going still again. His eyes narrowed as he felt a strange nudge against his senses.

"What is it?" Draco asked.

"The wards," Harry responded tersely. "Someone is trying to breach my wards." He pressed a kiss to Draco's forehead. "I need to check it out."

"I'm going with you," Draco insisted.

"You're staying here with our baby," Harry said sternly. His look softened a bit and he caressed Draco's face. "I'll be fine. I won't go outside the wards. I just need to be able to see who's trying to get through. I'll take Ron with me. We'll be right outside." He gingerly lifted the egg out of Ron's arms and gave it to Draco, his heart aching at the anxiety in Draco's eyes.

"We'll be fast," Ron said, following Harry out the door.

Harry marched across the lawn, a warm breeze ruffling his feathers. He felt the comforting hum of magic from the wards as he approached the boundary. He stopped, looking around and listening until he heard rustling from a bush the sat just outside the wards.

"Bloody hell," Ron whispered, stopping next to Harry right as Robert Grant stepped around the bush, his eyes locked on the house.

Grant's dark eyes scanned the yard, drifting right past Harry and Ron who were safely hidden behind the invisible wall of magic. He growled in frustration, turning to face away from the house and looking around. Then he turned back and pointed his wand, muttering an incantation.

Harry smirked wickedly as Grant tried to disable one of the wards. After a moment, Harry's magic lashed out and Grant cried out, dropping his wand as if he'd been burned. And he had. The skin on his hand was red and already blistering. Swearing colorfully, he snatched up his wand with his other hand and apparated away. Ron and Harry exchanged a smug high five before retreating back into the house.

They found Draco at the stove, stirring the tomato sauce and gently rocking the egg in one arm while he talked quietly. "Your daddy is a bloody idiot sometimes," he said softly. "But he takes care of us. He loves us so much. And your Uncle Ron would never let anything happen to you." He drew in a shaky breath. "We'll be alright," he added, as if the egg needed the reassurance as much as he did.

Harry thought his heart might melt. He was sure that Draco would be very glad to be rid of the remainder of the weird pregnancy hormones, but Harry fervently hoped that he'd never see an end of these beautifully sentimental moments. As prickly as he was sometimes, Draco possessed a tender heart that Harry adored.

"Are you okay darling?" Harry asked striding over to Draco and stroking his cheek. He shut the stove off and gathered Draco to his chest, resting one hand against the egg gently.

"What did you find? Who was it?" Draco asked anxiously.

"It was Grant, but he's gone now," Ron answered. "I really don't think it's an Imperius," he added reluctantly.

Harry nodded his agreement, frowning in thought. "The next problem is to figure out how he found this house," he said. "I was very careful when I bought it. The location is closely guarded. The only people can get here are those that I've invited myself. So, how did he end up just outside the wards?"

"Shit," Ron muttered, yanking off his auror robes. "Harry help me make sure he didn't plant something on me. I could have been tracked here." Harry and Ron checked the robes thoroughly before patting down the rest of Ron's clothing. After also using a few spells, they came up empty handed.

"Check the tin," Draco suggested.

Harry frowned, rushing over to snatch the blue tin from the counter. He muttered softly, pointing his wand at it. He gasped when the product label peeled away to reveal a small slip of parchment. Harry plucked the parchment from the tin and looked it over, his expression turning grim. "It's a tracking spell. Clever bastard," he muttered bitterly.

"Put it back," Draco instructed suddenly. "If you destroy it or through it out, he'll know we're on to him."

"He tried to kill you," Ron reminded him.

Draco frowned. "Yes, but maybe he didn't expect that to happen right away," he argued. "I have no idea how much of the toxins are in the tea. Perhaps his plan had been to make us ill and then overpower us. Maybe he was trying to kill us slowly." He chewed his lower lip thoughtfully. "He's no potions master. That is a fact."

"Alright..." Harry said uncertainly. "What do you suggest we do?"

"Obviously we don't drink this tea," Draco said. "We let him think that we're in the dark. Ron, let him know that we said thank you for the tea. Then let it slip that we fell a bit ill. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea... That sort of thing. He'll think his plan is working."

"Or I could arrest him," Ron suggested impatiently.

"What if he's involved in those wizards doing the dark rituals?" Draco asked pointedly. "Let him think that he's got you fooled, and you may get some answered. If he becomes a bigger problem, you find a way to take him out of the picture."

Ron shook his head. "I need to alert Kingsley," he said tiredly.

"You do that and then we'll eat," Harry said, pulling out some plates.

When they finally sat down for dinner, Draco bit his his lip and reluctantly summoned the miniature nest from the living room. Harry placed the nest on the empty chair next to Draco, smiling in encouragement. Draco hesitantly set the egg in the nest, and wrapped the warming blanket around it. He sat down in his own chair, biting his lower lip and looking like he'd like nothing better than to scoop the egg back up. "Why is this so hard?" he asked softly.

"Draco, that egg was still inside you three days ago," Harry reminded him, reaching out to stroke soft white feathers. "Plus, there's this madness with those dark wizards... To me, it makes sense that you're feeling anxious about our egg. It seems natural for you to want to hold it so much. It's our baby in there."

Draco nodded slowly, cooing when Harry nuzzled him sweetly. Feeling a little calmer, Draco rested one hand on the egg and picked his fork up with the other.

HPDM

Ron sat in a chair in Kingsley's office with his face buried in his hands. Kingsley was sitting at his desk, eyeing Ron sympathetically. They hadn't spoken a single word since he'd invited Ron inside. They'd simply sat in tense silence, while Ron composed himself. After several minutes, Ron lifted his head to look at the Minister.

"Do you know how hard it is to look that bastard in the eye?" Ron asked through clenched teeth. "Knowing that he tried to poison Harry and Draco. Knowing that he used a tracking spell to find their home. He tried to get through the wards." He swallowed hard. "I know I have to do this, but part of me just wants to use every barely legal curse I can think of."

The day had been long and frustrating. Grant had greeted Ron cheerfully, as always. He'd casually asked how Draco and Harry were. He'd innocently asked if the tea made Draco feel better. And Ron had smiled and assured him that Draco and Harry had both enjoyed the tea. Then Ron frowned slightly saying that the couple had gotten sick shortly after their dinner, speculating that perhaps the food at dinner hadn't agreed with them. Grant, the bastard, had simpered and expressed regret that they were feeling poorly. Suddenly Ron felt that perhaps he understood why some muggle murders preferred to stab their victims. Being forced to chat with Grant was making Ron feel a bit... stabby.

"You've played your part well," Kingsley said soothingly. "Just remember that you're going to get him for this. We'll use him to get as much information as we can and then he'll be headed to Azkaban."

Ron nodded sullenly. He could do this. He had to do this. It would only be a matter of time before he'd get the case closed. He had to believe that. He bid Kingsley a good night and left the Ministry in a hurry.

He stopped at a Chinese restaurant and picked up an assortment of food before popping over to Harry and Draco's house. He apparated into their living room to find them on the enormous cushion that Hermione had brought them months before.

Draco was lying on his side, his face screwed up in pain. His arm was stretched out to brush his fingers over the egg, which was resting in the little nest, next to the cushion. Harry was seated on the cushion and tenderly rubbing a salve onto Draco's stomach.

"What happened?" Ron asked, frowning at the couple.

"Draco's just over done it today," Harry said lightly. "Nothing serious. He's just very sore. Maybe next time he'll listen to me," he added, his hands still rubbing in soothing circles.

"Shut up," Draco grumbled.

Ron shook his head. "You two get sorted, and I'll get dinner set up," he said, shuffling past them to the dining room.

"Are you feeling better?" Harry asked softly, sliding his hand from Draco's stomach around to his lower back.

"A little," Draco responded, tilting his head to look up at Harry.

"I think you just want attention," Harry grinned.

Draco pouted. "Surely I wouldn't need to injure myself to get your attention," he countered.

Harry smiled, his hand coming up to comb his fingers through soft blond hair. He smiled as Draco sighed happily. He shifted closer, lowering his head to kiss Draco's lips, his hand settling to cradle the back of Draco's head.

"I love you Harry Potter," Draco breathed against Harry's lips. Harry responded with another loving kiss.

Ron leaned against the door frame, catching the end of the tender moment. "Alright Harry," Ron chided with a grin. "Let Draco eat his egg rolls. Then you can molest him, or whatever."

Harry winked at Ron before pressing another sweet kiss to Draco's lips. Then he shuffled back and helped Draco to sit up. As Draco got to his feet, Harry picked up their egg, dropping a little kiss to the shell. Draco looked rather pleased by the gesture, smiling to himself as he grabbed the little nest.

Draco set the little nest on an empty chair in the dining room and took a seat himself. Harry placed the egg down and covered it up with a blanket before moving to his own seat.

"You two will be great parents," Ron commented, setting two eggrolls on Draco's plate before loading his own plate with good.

"Thank you," Draco responded. He hummed happily as he but into one of the eggrolls. After swallowing, he glanced at his egg pensively. "It's strange isn't it? This consuming love for a tiny person you haven't even met yet... I just can't get over it."

"Neither can I," Harry agreed with a wide smile. "I'm so excited, but terrified at the same time. And... I love our baby so much," he added softly. His wings streteched out behind him, one of them curling around Draco slightly.

Ron smiled. "It suits you both somehow," he said.

"I think fatherhood would look quite decent on you as well," Draco noted with a little smirk. "When are you planning to contribute to the wizarding population?"

Predictably, Ron blushed. "Well, got to find the right woman for that," he hedged.

"Come on Ron," Harry chided. "You can do better than that. We know that something is going on between you and Pansy. She looks at you like she plan to have you for dessert."

"Or maybe she'd like to be dessert," Draco added with a naughty grin.

Ron cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Pansy came over to my place last night," he admitted.

"And?" Draco prompted impatiently.

"And that woman is... ferocious in bed," Ron blurted out, his face as red as his hair.

Draco threw back his head and cackled in delight. "Oh that shameless tart," he chuckled fondly. He shook his head at Ron's slight frown. "Pansy doesn't shag indiscriminately like I may suggest on occasion. But, she's damn persistent and really puts in the effort when she finds someone that she fancies. The fact that she didn't immediately come to give me all the sordid details is probably a good thing."

"Draco?" a voice called out.

Draco snorted in disbelief. "Nevermind. She's got brilliant timing," he said, rolling his eyes.

Pansy came into the dining room and froze when she realized Ron was there. "I didn't mean to interrupt dinner," she said.

"It's no problem," Draco said, waving her off. "Excuse me a moment," he said to Harry and Ron before getting up following Pansy into the living room.

"Finally coming to tell me about your fling with Weasley?" Draco asked with a smirk. To his amazement, Pansy blushed. She never blushed.

"Last night was the first time," she said, not making eye contact. "There's been a lot of flirting but... Salazar, last night I just couldn't help myself."

"Spare me the details," Draco begged. "I don't want to think about the two of you..." He shuddered in revulsion.

"Can you stop being gay for a moment?" she blurted out, sighing when Harry and Ron burst into a fit if laughter, clearly overhearing her outburst. "I just need my best friend right now," she added, lowering her voice.

"Alright, keep your knickers on," Draco responded, looking amused. "I'll try to keep my gay-ness under control," he added, rolling his eyes.

"I'm afraid I might have scared him off," Pansy said miserably.

"Please," Draco scoffed. "I think he was, perhaps, a little intimidated. But, I don't think it's going to run him off." He gave her a questioning look. "Did you give him a blow job?"

"Don't be stupid, Draco."

Draco grinned. "Good girl. He'll definitely be back for more. But more than that," he said, growing serious, "I think he's looking for more than a shag. He seems to really like you."

Pansy smiled and hugged Draco tightly. "I suppose you can go back to being gay," she said teasingly.

"As if I ever stopped," Draco retorted. "I've been thinking about Harry shagging me all day."

Pansy giggled. "You've never told me... How good is the The Chosen One?" she asked with a smirk.

Draco bit his lip, his cheeks growing pink. "So good that I haven't topped even once," he admitted.

Pansy looked impressed. "And you love topping," she noted.

"I even begged once," Draco added.

"Now that's impressive," Pansy said, looping her arm through Draco's and leading him back to the dining room.

Ron was setting an extra plate down next to his own. "Want to join us Pansy?" he asked, sounding hopeful. "There's plenty of food."

"Of course," Harry agreed when Pansy hesitated. "We're glad to have you."

Pansy accepted, taking the seat next to Ron. She was delighted when he pressed a soft kiss to her cheek.

"So how was work Ron?" Draco asked, taking another bite of his eggroll.

"Frustrating," Ron said with a sigh. "I wanted to strangle Grant every time he spoke to me. But, I'm completely certain that there's no Imperius curse at work. I'm slightly less certain about whether or not he is working with those other wizards, but there's not much doubt. Kingsley said that he and Robards agree with me."

"We've got to get more information," Harry groaned.

"I'm sure Grant has been messing up my progress this whole time," Room growled. "Maybe it'll be better to arrest him and get it out of the way. At least then I could move forward without him messing things up. "It's too dangerous for me to just follow him. And taking a team will be too obvious." He returned to his meal sullenly. He shot Pansy a tense smile when she patted his hand consolingly.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, each of them lost in thought. There had to be a way to get the information they needed to stop the dark rituals. They weren't willing to give up, especially since it was a threat on their lives.

"Hang on," Harry said slowly, setting his fork down. "All we need is information. A reconnaissance tactic..."

"Yes. And?" Draco asked impatiently.

"We're going to follow Hermione's example," Harry said, looking pleased with himself.

"How?" Ron asked warily.

"Rita Skeeter," Harry said excitedly. "She's an unregistered animagus. A beetle. She's got the best disguise."

"I forgot about that," Draco muttered. "Why would she help us?"

"For one, she's still unregistered," Harry snorted. "Two... I plan to make it worth it. I'll give her a story she won't be able to pass up." He glanced meaningfully at the egg.

"You plan to use our baby as a bribe?" Draco asked incredulously, a scowl forming on his face.

"Just think about it," Harry urged. "That information is going to get out eventually. This will allow us to control it. I'll have her print exactly what we find acceptable."

"The story would be so good that she likely won't complain much about you restricting her... embellishment tendencies," Pansy commented.

"Exactly," Harry agreed. "Most reporters would do anything for such an exclusive."

"I don't like it," Draco said, still frowning. "You don't bargain with a baby. That's awful."

"What would be awful is more people dying," Harry countered. "I want our child to be safe. If I can ensure that with a little manipulation, I'll do it. Please Draco," he added quietly.

Draco sighed, leaning against Harry's side. "Fine," he muttered.

"Thank you," Harry murmured, kissing Draco softly. "It'll be alright."

Draco nodded, returning to his meal.

"So..." Pansy said, happy to change the subject. "Harry, did you really get Draco to beg for your cock?"

All three men choked.

HPDM~HPDM

Harry stood very still, allowing Rita Skeeter to look him over carefully. They were in a private room at the Hogs Head for their meeting. Ron was sitting quietly and looking at Rita expectantly.

Oh, how Harry despised this woman. She didn't care who she hurt so long as she got an interesting story to publish. She'd made Harry's life difficult on numerous occasions. But, her animagus form made her an excellent snoop.

"They're beautiful wings," Rita noted. "Will I be privileged enough to see Mr. Malfoy's as well?"

"Not today," Harry replied blandly. "Today I come to make a deal with you."

"And what would that be?" Rita asked, her eyes never leaving the soft great feathers.

"We have need of information," Harry said. "It's for an important case. There is a traitor in our midst and we can't get close enough to discover the identities or motives of his... associates. You can," he added, giving her a knowing look.

"Another threat to expose my animagus status?" Rita snapped. "And I thought you might be above all that."

"Actually, I'm prepared to offer an incentive," Harry replied.

"An interview with yourself and Mr. Malfoy?" she asked.

Harry nodded. "But it's even better than you think," he informed her. "I'll give you an exclusive on a very big story."

"Huge," Ron put in helpfully.

"What's the catch?" she asked with a scowl.

Harry smiled. "You get the information we need for us, without sharing it with anyone else," he said firmly. "I'll even acknowledge your assistance on the case. And you will publish only what I allow for the interview. If you lie, embellish or turn on me in any way, I'll destroy you. Professionally. Personally. Publicly," he stated calmly.

"Take the deal," Ron said, before Rita could sneer. The interview itself would be worth it. You want this exclusive."

Rita considered them for a moment. Then she sighed. "Who am I following and why?" she asked warily.

Harry grinned, reaching out to shake Rita's hand.


	9. Chapter 9

Draco gasped softly as he stepped into the bedroom he shared with Harry. Their nest had dark red rose petals scattered all over it. There were lit candles on the end tables and dressers. Soft music was floating through the room.

"Harry?" Draco asked. His stomach was twisting with growing excitement and nerves.

"Right here," Harry said, stepping out of the bathroom. He was dressed in a pair of black trousers and a white button down shirt. He was cradling their egg in his arms. It was a sight that Draco was sure that he would never tire of. Harry was going to be an amazing father.

"What's this about?" Draco asked, a smile tugging at his lips.

Harry carefully placed the egg in the smaller nest and covered it. He straightened up and held one hand out to Draco with a loving smile. "Would you dance with me?" he asked shyly.

Draco chuckled softly taking Harry's hand and allowing himself to be pulled close. They swayed and twirled, carefully keeping to the center of the room. It wouldn't do to spoil the mood by catching their wings on fire with the candles.

Draco sighed happily, wrapping one arm around Harry's neck while his other hand was held in Harry's loving grasp. He cooed softly when Harry kissed his fingers.

"I know we're sort of stuck here for now," Harry said softly. "So I thought you deserved to be romanced a bit."

"You've spent the last few months making me feel... cherished," Draco replied. "I don't need anything more. But thank you." He kissed Harry lovingly, so grateful that they'd found so much love together.

"I love you so much," Harry murmured. "There's nobody that I'd rather spend my life with." He guided Draco's head lower to press a reverent kiss to his forehead. "Draco, will you marry me?"

Draco stilled, staring at Harry with wide eyes. "I- Are you serious?" he asked.

"Perfectly serious," Harry confirmed, pulling a small black box out of his trouser pocket. He released Draco and opened the box to reveal a pair of platinum bands. Each had tiny diamonds arranged to look like a pair of wings.

"Oh my..." Draco said faintly, staring at the rings. His gaze lifted to Harry's face, his gray eyes swimming with tears. "Of course," he whispered. "I'll marry you Harry."

Harry pulled Draco into a sweet kiss, carefully slipping the ring box back into his pocket. He chuckled breathlessly as Draco began tugging him eagerly to their nest.

They shed their clothes quickly, climbing into the nest and reaching for each other. They pressed themselves chest to chest, their mouths meeting over and over. Their hands drifted everywhere; Teasing, loving, arousing.

Harry reached for their bottle of lubricant and opened it without breaking their fervent snogging.

"Wait," Draco panted, pulling away abruptly.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked.

"Nothing," Draco assured him. "It's just-" He bit his lip, his wings fluttering. "I'd like to top this time. Would that be alright?"

Harry's eyes widened in surprise. "Yes!" he blurted out. "Anything you want."

"You're sure?" Draco asked uncertainly.

"Yes," Harry said again. "Just tell me how you want me."

"On your stomach," Draco said, his voice husky with arousal. He watched as Harry complied, and then began coating his fingers with the lubricant. Once Harry was comfortable, Draco lifted one hand to caress and stroke Harry's beautiful feathers while the other hand moved lower to prepare his lover.

Harry groaned loudly. The stretch from Draco's fingers burned a bit. He hadn't bottomed in quite a while, and never with Draco. But Harry was too aroused for the discomfort to be of any concern. Harry wasn't sure that he'd ever be able to handle Draco touching his wings without getting an erection from now on.

Draco bit his lip, forcing himself to go slowly. He was so relieved when Harry seemed ready for him. He carefully removed his fingers and slicked up his cock. "Can you get on your hands and knees?" he asked.

Harry complied quickly, his arms trembling. He gasped as Draco slowly entered him, pausing frequently to let Harry adjust.

Once Draco was fully sheathed he reached up to Harry's torso, urging him to sit up on his knees. "Pull your wings in so I can get closer," Draco instructed.

Harry allowed his wings to relax and droop, and he chirped happily when he felt Draco's chest press against his back. For a moment they remained still, upright on their knees and panting softly. And then Draco rolled his hips. Harry sighed, dropping his head back onto Draco's shoulder.

Draco kept his pace slow, wanting to prolong their lovemaking. He had been ridiculously on edge since the moment Harry had got on his hands and knees. He reached around and wrapped his hand around Harry's cock, stroking languidly in time to his own gentle thrusting.

Harry turned his head to face Draco, tilting his head hopefully. Draco obliged him with a deep kiss, his hips and hands never faltering.

Harry came first, moaning into Draco's mouth. Draco followed him into bliss soon after.

Draco withdrew from Harry's body carefully. A few spells left them clean, dry and content.

"Are you alright?" Draco asked drawing Harry into a warm hug.

"Of course," Harry replied. "That was brilliant." He kissed Draco lightly, snuggling into Draco's chest. After a moment of comfortable silence, Harry pulled back to look at Draco. "We're getting married," he said with a grin.

"We are," Draco agreed laughing fondly. "When do you think we should do it?"

"What about now?" Harry asked.

Draco rolled his eyes but then stilled. Something about Harry's expression... "Harry?"

Harry drew in a deep breath, his hands trembling as he took hold of Draco's. "If you're willing, we can get married now," he said.

"How?" Draco asked incredulously.

"I might have made some... arrangements," Harry admitted. "If you'd prefer to wait, it's not a problem. But, you have the option to get married right away."

Draco swallowed hard, his eyes threatening to flood their nest. It was mad to suddenly get married like that. Complete madness. But, he loved Harry so much. Draco had never wanted anyone as much as he wanted Harry. And they had no idea when their egg would hatch, but it would be nice to be married before that time.

Draco had already agreed to marry him. This was just a matter of timing and planning. Did he really need the huge dramatic event that Malfoys usually had? No. He only needed Harry.

"Let's do it," Draco said suddenly.

Harry's face lit up. "Really?" he asked excitedly. When Draco nodded, Harry hopped out of the nest and ran to the closet. He emerged a moment later carrying two sets of dress robes and handed one to Draco. "Put that on," he instructed, setting about putting on his own robes.

Draco dressed himself, not bothering to question it. Harry's obvious excitement was making him a little nervous.

Once dressed, Harry took their egg in his arms and moved toward the door. Draco followed him down the stairs apprehensively.

Draco froze at the sight of their living room. The furniture had been removed and replaced with simple white chairs. In place of the telly was a white arch covered in ivy and fairy lights. There were flowers everywhere. Their friends, the Weasleys and Draco's parents were all sitting in chairs while Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt stood under the arch.

Ron walked over and carefully too the egg from Harry before returning to his seat next to Pansy. Then Harry gently guided Draco toward the arch. "Is this alright?" he asked softly.

"You're a lunatic," Draco remarked, though the look he gave Harry was adoring.

"If this isn't good," Harry pressed, "just say the word."

"Don't try to get out of it now," Draco retorted haughtily. "I'm about to marry the shite out of you, and you'll just have to take it."

Harry snorted. That was his Draco.

The ceremony was brief but sweet. Harry pulled out the little box again and carefully slid one of the rings onto Draco's finger. Draco did the same for Harry, marveling at the glittering diamond wings. When Kingsley prompted them, Harry pressed his lips to Draco's tenderly, both of them weeping tears of joy.

"And now, if everyone will proceed to the dining room," Pansy said loudly. "We have dinner prepared and ready to serve."

Draco allowed himself to be guided to the dining room, his mind still swirling with thoughts. He'd just gotten married. He was married and waiting for his baby to hatch from an egg. His wings fluttered behind him, brushing lightly against Harry's wings.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked.

"Overwhelmed," Draco admitted. "How did you manage this?"

"I had some help," Harry said. "I contacted a magical jeweler by owl to special order the rings. Pansy and your mum planned the decorations and set up. Ginny, Ron and Molly handled the food. I had to get you upstairs at a specific time do they could set up quickly. There was a charm in our closet that alerted Hermione when I got our clothes out."

Draco shook his head in amazement. "Good thing I agreed to it," he noted.

"Absolutely," Harry chuckled. "It would have been a shame to get rid of all this. But we all agreed to accept your decision when the time came."

"This is wonderful," Draco said, assured him.

The food was delicious and plentiful. The dining room and table had been magically expanded to accommodate their guests. Lucius was a mostly silent for the whole thing, but when he did speak it was with all the politeness he could muster.

The only truly awkward moment came when Molly wanted to hold the egg. She'd reached toward Ron for it and Ron instantly shifted away as Draco let out a trill of sudden panic. Molly raised her hands in a show of surrender, her eyes wide.

Ron got to his feet and placed the egg in Draco's arms. "It's alright mate," Ron murmured. "She didn't know."

"I'm so sorry," Draco stammered with pink cheeks.

"The egg is very fragile," Harry explained, giving Molly an apologetic look. "Our instinct is to guard it. At first, Ron was really the only person who could hold it. We're less bothered by it now but... Draco doesn't know you well."

"I completely understand," Molly nodded. "I certainly didn't intend to upset you."

"It's alright Draco," Harry murmured, kissing the blond's forehead.

"Harry is like a son to us," Arthur said. "That makes you family," he informed Draco.

"We're very happy for you both," Molly added.

Draco smiled slightly, willing his racing heart to calm. "Would you like to look at it?" he offered shakily.

Ron slowly took the egg back and moved to sit next to his mother again. He carefully shifted the blanket aside, allowing Molly to get a get look at the delicate blue shell. Ron glanced at Draco and saw that the blond had relaxed into Harry's arms.

"It's so lovely," Molly said. "And I have no doubt that it'll be a beautiful baby."

"Indeed," Narcissa agreed. "I'm looking forward to seeing this child."

Draco sighed quietly, his anxiety fading rapidly. He'd known that the Weasley matriarch would hard their child, but his instinct to protect had flared in sudden, crippling panic. He felt foolish for his reaction. But, the others didn't seem to mind and had moved on.

Harry didn't seem bothered at all by Draco's reaction. He only seemed to concern himself with Draco's comfort. Fighting against his instincts would only make Draco more restless and unhappy. So, he kept a watchful eye on his precious offspring while he ate his dinner.

Eventually cake was served and wedding gifts were presented to the newly weds. Friends and family lingered to celebrate, glad that they could be there for Draco and Harry.

"I think it was a lovely wedding," Pansy noted as Ron handed the egg to Draco. Ron had smugly carried the egg around for most of the evening.

"It was beautiful," Draco agreed. "Thank you."

"It was Harry's idea," Pansy reminded him. "He told us what he wanted and we brought his ideas to life. He loves you so much Draco," she added, her eyes drifting to the other groom who was hugging Molly and Arthur before they departed.

"I'm so lucky," Draco said with a smile.

"You deserve it," Pansy told him firmly, kissing his cheek. Then she grinned mischievously. "And as an additional present, how about some gossip?"

Draco laughed. "Well, don't keep me waiting," he said.

"Neville has asked Hermione to go to dinner with him," Pansy said quietly, pointing off to one side. They could see Hermione and Neville neatly stacking the gifts and talking with blushes on their faces.

"I had no idea they fancied each other," Draco said.

"They've been very sneaky about it," Pansy agreed. "Much more so than Blaise and Ginny."

Draco made a strange garbled sound. "What?" he hissed.

"I know!" Pansy gushed gleefully. "I could just die. "I popped over to his house a few days ago and caught them shagging each other silly." Ron shuddered.

"Oh Merlin," Draco laughed. "I'm sure that's quite an eyeful."

"It was hot," Pansy declared. When Ron glared at her she backtracked. "Completely inappropriate. I was thoroughly disgusted." As soon as Room looked away again she fanned her face with her hand. Draco covered his mouth his suppress his laughter.

"Anyway," Ron said, giving Pansy a sour look, "I think they make a decent couple. Blaise isn't a bad bloke. Ginny seems happy."

"That's very mature and supportive of you Ron," Draco noted with a nod.

"So long as I don't have to see or hear about them shagging," Ron said, grimacing.

"Who is shagging?" Harry asked, coming to Draco's side.

Draco shushed him with a grin. "You heard Ron. "He doesn't want to hear about it."

Finally, everyone left for their own homes. The house had been returned to his normal state aside from the pile of gifts that waited on the coffee table. But those could wait.

"I believe I'd like to be inside to again," Draco said playfully, holding their egg in one arm while his other arm tugged Harry closer.

"What are you waiting for?" Harry teased. He turned and sauntered up the stairs with Draco on his heels.

HPDM~HPDM

Rita Skeeter spent a few months trying to catch Grant participating in nefarious activities or meeting with his cohorts. She collected information whenever she could, secretly reporting it all to Ron. She was rather eager to be credited with her research as well as getting access to whatever secret Harry was hiding.

"This ought to make the Chosen One happy," Rita said, tossing a roll of parchment to Ron with a smug smile. They'd met at the Hogshead again.

Ron read over Rita's notes, his eyes going wide. Rita had managed to find the motive behind the strange rituals and attacks. These dark wizards wanted to change themselves, but had decided to test their potions and spells on others first. They had wanted to become veela.

"Veela aren't related to birds," Ron said, glancing away from the parchment to Rita.

"A common misconception," Rita responded waving her hand dismissively.

Ron nodded, looking back to the parchment. Rita had listed names and locations for meeting places. Toward the bottom of the parchment, Rita had noted that the wizards had wanted to collect Harry and Draco for study, dead or alive.

"Unfortunately, they didn't stand around casually discussing their reasons for becoming veela," Rita said. "I'd guess that it all boils down to power. The combined abilities of a wizard and a veela... Obviously they weren't fortunate enough to be born that way."

"But to mutilate their own bloodline," Ron muttered, disgusted. He sighed and pushed away from the table. "This may be enough. You've been a big help," he said.

"As much as I admire Harry, I didn't do this out of the goodness of my heart," she reminded him.

"Yeah yeah," Ron waved her off. "Let me get them safe. Then you'll get your recognition and the exclusive interview. You have my word."

"It's been a pleasure doing business with you," Rita said, her smile sickeningly sweet.

Ron apparated to Harry and Draco's house as quickly as he could manage. He found Draco pacing living room slowly, rocking the egg in his arms and talking softly. He glanced up and smiled at Ron.

"I think we're getting close," Draco said. The egg had gotten heavier and if you really focus, you can feel the baby nudging against the shell."

Ron hurried forward eagerly, gingerly laying his hand on the warm shell. After a few moments, he felt a soft sort of tapping against his palm. "That's fantastic!" Ron enthused.

"It is," Draco agreed. "But what's got you all worked up?"

"Rita came through," Ron told him excitedly. "She got names, meeting spots... "I'm so much closer to getting them all. You and Harry will be able to leave the house with the baby."

"That would be nice," Draco agreed. "Harry's in the kitchen. He'll want to hear this." He gestured for Ron to follow as he went into the kitchen.

Harry stopped his stirring as Ron and Draco came in. He leaned down and pressed little kisses to the egg before kissing Draco's lips.

"I see you're still disgustingly in love and happy," Ron joked.

"Very much so," Harry nodded with a grin. "Want to stay for dinner? I've made soup and fresh bread."

"I've actually got to meet with Kingsley," Ron said. "I just wanted to show you what Rita got for us."

Harry read over Rita's notes carefully. "Four of these names are ministry workers," he noted. "Aside from Grant of course."

"Kingsley won't be happy," Draco added. He gave Harry a searching look. "Maybe we need to help with this. Ron doesn't have a partner."

"And the baby?" Harry asked softly.

Draco bit his lip. "Our other friends could protect the egg," he said, his voice wavering.

"One of us should be here," Harry said. "You should take care of our baby and I'll help Ron."

"I'm your partner!" Draco objected.

"You are," Harry agreed. "In everything. But I need to know that you've got the baby. Ron and I work well together. I'll be alright."

"Don't leave me behind," Draco begged, not caring that he sounded emotional and weak. He could stand the thought of something happening to Harry. It was Draco's job to protect Harry.

"He's not going to," Ron said suddenly.

"Ron-"

"No," Ron said firmly, cutting Harry off. "I'm going to make a team to handle this. You two are going to stay home and take care of my godchild. If one of you lost the other, you'd never fully recover. I'll be fine."

"We don't want to get hurt," Draco said, his expression pained and anxious.

"I'll be alright," Ron insisted. "I'll pick the team myself. I may even drag Kingsley along." He smiled slightly. "You three are family and I'm here to make sure you stick around for a while. "Let me take care of you Harry," he added.

Harry sighed, hugging Ron tightly. "Be careful," Harry muttered. "Don't make a move until you're sure of yourself."

"Yes mum," Ron joked. "Now hurry up and hatch the baby." He gave a cheerful wave and apparated away.

Draco sighed, hugging the egg close. "Uncle Ron is as stupid as your father," he said quietly.

"Oi!" Harry protested with a laugh.

HPDM~HPDM

"Spread out," Ron said quietly. "We can't let them escape." He was hunched behind a large clump of bushes with a team of six trustworthy aurors and Kingsley. In the nearby clearing, another ritual was taking place. "It's not all of them, but we can capture these nutters and bring their numbers down.

"Grant over there?" one of the aurors, Alan Green, asked with a scowl.

"Possibly," Ron said. "We'll find out in a moment."

Kingsley nodded solemnly. It was strange to be in the field again and under the direction of Ron Weasley. But Ron knew the case well. The red head had avoided explaining exactly how he's gotten his information, and Robards had been angry. But Kingsley understood. Sometimes a source was a rather more shady than one might prefer. You pick your battles. Robards would get over it.

The aurors used disillusionment spells on themselves and began to move to surround the dark wizards. It was fewer aurors than Ron was comfortable with, but they'd had few options. Grant had a lot of friends in the DMLE, and Ron couldn't risk betrayal.

It took several minutes for the aurors to get into position. Ron lifted his wand and began casting as he moved forward on silent feet. He removed the disillusionment charm as soon as one of the dark wizards looked up in alarm. Suddenly, the aurors appeared, blocking off escape.

Ron ducked as a curse zoomed toward him. It was an ominous red color and set some bushes ablaze. Scowling, Ron pressed forward, his wand slicing through the air as he cast spell after spell.

After fifteen minutes, five dark wizards were disarmed and bound. The aurors were relatively unharmed. It just seemed to easy.

"Well done Auror Weasley," Kingsley muttered to Ron tiredly. He looked over at the other Aurors. "Well done everyone."

"What about the others?" Ron asked. "There are six more names on this list." He wrenched the hoods off of the wizards, checking each face and comparing it to the list he pulled out of his pocket. Then he froze. "Where's Grant?"

"It's alright," Auror Green said. "We'll track him down. He'll be easy to find."

Ron swallowed hard. Grant should have been there. What was he doing instead? "Question them," Ron demanded.

"Alright," Green said calmly. "We'll get them to the ministry and interrogate them."

"We do it now," Ron snapped. "We could miss something important by following strict protocol or patting ourselves on the back too quickly. Ask now." Ron knew he probably sounded a bit unhinged, but these wizards had done a lot of damage. The rest of their group could be doing something horrible at another location right at that moment.

Kingsley pulled a small bottle of veritaserum from one pocket and poured three drops into one prisoner's mouth. A moment later, the wizard's face went slack and his eyes became glassy. Satisfied, Kingsley looked at Ron expectantly.

"Where is the rest of your group?" Ron snarled.

The prisoner blinked slowly. "At Harry Potter's house."

Ron gasped sharply. Kingsley turned to the other Aurors. "Take them to the DMLE and then use this portkey to meet us," he barked, tapping his wand against a button and handing it to Auror Green. Then Kingsley grabbed Ron's arm and apparated them both away.


	10. Chapter 10

Ron felt his breath stutter and his heart pound in his chest. He and Kingsley had apparated to a spot just outside of Harry's wards. They wanted to catch the wizards before they'd gotten through Harry's wards. The problem was, the wards were already down. "No," Ron breathed, horror clawing at him and threatening to suffocate him.

"Let's move," Kingsley snapped running toward the house. Ron followed hastily.

They slammed through the door with a spell and ran into the house ready to attack. They found Harry and Draco facing off against six wizards. Their wings were spread wide and they had assumed dueling positions, carefully blocking the stairway. They looked exhausted. Harry had one arm wrapped around his own torso.

The wizards turned to look at Ron and Kingsley, firing spells at them, giving Draco and Harry the chance to fire off stunning spells. They let out high, shrill shrieking sounds distracting their attackers to allow Ron and Kingsley to join the fight more easily.

Harry groaned, sinking to his knees. His wings drooped and he braced himself against the wall, blood oozing from a ghastly wound on his abdomen. "Harry, just hold on," Draco urged him, shifting to shield Harry. "Hermione!"

The pounding of footsteps was heard and then Hermione and Pansy appeared throwing hexes over Draco's shoulders. They were careful to avoid his wings as they stubbornly continued to block the stairs.

"Harry. Harry, stay awake," Hermione said suddenly, ducking behind Draco to grasp at Harry's shoulders.

"No! Stay with me Harry," Draco begged, not dating to take his eyes off of the dark wizards.

In the next moment, Neville and Blaise tumbled through the floo and the other aurors rushed through the door. In a flash, they joined the fray and the dark wizards were quickly subdued.

Draco sobbed and dropped to his knees, turning to cradle Harry's face in his hands. "Harry," he whimpered.

Harry's eyelids were drooping. "S-So cold," he stuttered, his body trembling.

"We don't have time to get him to the hospital," Hermione said, swallowing down her urge to cry. "Just get him lying down.

Blaise and Pansy levitated Harry carefully away from the stairs before lowering him to the floor. Neville was pulling potions out of a pouch and setting them next to Hermione. Hermione immediately set to work.

"What happened?" Ron asked weakly.

"We felt them tearing through the wards," Draco said, his tears falling steadily. "We floo called Hermione. She came and brought Ginny, Pansy and Luna." He swallowed hard. "We sent the ladies upstairs with the egg. No matter what happened to us, we weren't going to risk the baby."

"Hermione sent me her Patronus," Neville put in helpfully. "She told me what was happening and wanted me to get her some potions. I called Blaise and had him help me."

"There were too many," Draco went on. "Harry got hit by some awful curse right before you got here. It happened so fast we..." He trailed off, his body shaking with sobs.

Ginny and Luna came downstairs warily, taking in the bound wizards, broken furniture and Harry Potter, soaked in blood. Ginny was holding the egg in her arms, determined to keep it warm.

"What is that?"

Ron scowled, infuriated that Grant dared to speak to them. But, Grant was staring at the bundle in Ginny's arms.

Draco took the egg from Ginny, gently nuzzling the warm shell as the comforting weight settled in his arms. "It's alright. I'm here," he cooed to the egg.

"How?" Grant asked, his voice full of shock.

"You don't even know what your potion actually does," Draco snapped. "Well, I'm certainly not going to satisfy your curiosity. I think rotting in Azkaban is too good for you."

The Aurors began lifting their prisoners and preparing to move them to the DMLE holding cells. Their interrogation was going to be quite thorough.

Auror Green paused and knelt down between Draco and Ron. "You'll let us know how he is?" he asked quietly, glancing at Harry.

"Of course," Ron answered, his head bowed.

"Listen Weasley... Take a few days off," Green urged lightly. "The rest of us will will cover your work load."

"Thanks," Ron whispered, closing his eyes tightly.

"And, er- Congratulations Malfoy," Green said awkwardly.

Draco drew in a shuddering breath. He opened his mouth, but couldn't being himself to actually speak. Green patted his shoulder and stood up.

"All right lads," he said briskly. "Time to take out the trash as the muggles say. We're gonna have fun with this one," he added sneering at Grant. "We don't appreciate someone that'll turn against one of our own. You'll regret your treachery."

"Keep it legal gentleman," Kingsley said, his eyes focused on Harry's limp form.

"Always Minister," Green agreed, apparating away with the others.

Hermione bit her lip, anxiety pouring from her. Harry was barely breathing. She needed her potions to work faster. The curse that had hit Harry had been devastating. It had cut him open but had also burned his tissues. Merely closing the wound wouldn't have stopped him from dying. Painfully.

Draco shuffled closer to Harry, still cradling their egg. He reached out to gently stroke Harry's hair. "Harry Potter, if you die, I'll never forgive you," he said, his voice barely more than a broken whisper. "I don't want to go on without you."

A small sound made Draco hold his breath and look down. There was a crack in the egg shell. "Now?" he blurted out incredulously.

This brought a bout of slightly hysterical laughter from some of his friends. Pansy moved to hug Draco. "Whatever happens, we're here for you," she murmured tearfully. "You're not alone."

"Trying to get rid of me?" a voice whispered.

Pansy released Draco and gave a joyful cry. Harry's eyes were open and focused tenderly on his husband.

Draco passed the egg to Ron and gently gathered Harry into his arms. "Don't ever do that to me again," Draco sobbed. He sighed as he felt Harry hug him weakly.

"I'm alright Draco," Harry murmured.

"Almost," Hermione corrected, holding up another vial of potion. She looked shaken but she hadn't shed a single tear. "Drink this and you should be able to sit up properly."

Harry drank the potion without complaint. After a few moments, he sat up and stretched his wings. "I expect you to rest for a few days," Hermione said sternly.

"I will," Harry assured her.

Draco hugged Harry again, relief flooding through him. "The egg is hatching," he informed Harry with a watery smile.

"Let's get ready to have a baby then," Harry said, allowing Neville and Blaise to help him stand. He slowly made his way up the stairs, ignoring the pain in his stomach in favor of focusing on his joy. Harry settled himself in their nest, sighing in relief at the comfort it offered. Draco followed him, sitting in the nest close to his husband. Ron gingerly place the egg in Draco's lap.

"We'll wait outside," Pansy said, leaving the couple with their egg, Ron and Hermione. "We'll inform the Weasley's and your parents," she told Draco before shutting the door.

Draco barely nodded his acknowledgement, his eyes fixed on the egg. He could see the shell shift slightly from the pressure inside. The crack widened a bit and the egg wobbled slightly with the baby's movement.

"Can we help?" Draco asked anxiously. He felt like an arse just sitting their watching his baby struggle to break out of an egg.

"I don't see why not," Hermione responded. "Just be careful."

Draco pressed at the egg carefully, watching it give and crack a bit more. Harry reached over and slid his fingers along one crack until he found a spot loose enough to slip one finger inside. He tugged a bit, pulling some of the shell loose. Now that there was a little hole, Draco began opening the shell in earnest. He gave a little cry and reached into the egg.

Draco lifted out a tiny baby boy with dark hair. Hermione stepped closer and carefully severed the little cord that was attached to the baby's abdomen and then cleared his airway with a gentle spell. She handed Draco a soft towel. "You should clean him up," she said, tears finally making their way down her face.

Draco began rubbing the baby down with the towel, his heart aching as the baby began to cry. He could see the little featherless wings protruding from the baby's shoulder blades. Draco made gentle cooing sounds, as he cleaned his son off. "My beautiful baby boy," Draco said softly, accepting a blanket from Hermione and deftly swaddling the infant.

"You're good at that," Harry noted.

"I might have practiced a bit," Draco admitted, smiling as the baby calmed and blinked up at him. "He's got your hair."

"Poor lamb," Harry chuckled. "I think he's got your eyes though. And your perfect nose."

"He's amazing," Draco whispered.

"What's his name?" Ron asked moving closer for a better look.

"James Sirius Malfoy-Potter," Draco replied, kissing the baby's forehead tenderly.

"Really?" Harry asked eagerly.

"Yes," Draco answered. "I think he looks like a James, don't you? And we can use a constellation name for the next baby," he added lightly.

"The next one?" Harry asked with a smile.

Draco gently placed baby James in Harry's arms. "Harry Potter, we will fill this house with children if that's what you want," Draco said.

Harry grinned, glad that his pain had subsided enough that he could thoroughly enjoy holding his son. "Why don't we stop at two or three?" he suggested with a laugh. Draco nodded his agreement, kissing Harry sweetly.

Ron smiled happily. "I'll go make my godson a bottle," he said proudly. He left the room and a moment later, they heard loud cheering from downstairs.

HPDM~HPDM

Draco carefully picked up his squirming son, his heart twisting at the sound of James' pitiful cries. After a week, Draco still couldn't bare the sound of his baby boy crying. It made Draco want to cry as well.

"Everything alright?" Harry asked, stepping into the nursery with a full bottle of milk. He smiled, admiring the sight of his husband nuzzling their son and cooing quietly to soothe the infant's crying. It was a beautiful thing to behold and Harry was so grateful that this was his life now.

"Somebody doesn't like to have his nappy changed," Draco said, his voice laced with sympathy as he kissed James' face. "My poor darling. Let's get you fed."

"Want me to feed him?" Harry offered, handing Draco the bottle.

"I'll do it," Draco declined. "I'd like to be the one to settle him after making him cry. I feel terrible," he admitted quietly.

Harry nodded in understanding. Molly and Narcissa had assured them that they'd stop feeling horrifically guilty ever time their son so much as whimpered. But so far, Draco and Harry were struggling.

"I'll let you hold him after he's eaten," Draco said, watching James suckle the bottle hungrily. "I know you're dying for a cuddle."

"I just wish Rita wasn't coming today," Harry grumbled, guiding Draco down the stairs. "We could spend the whole day cuddling."

Draco smiled at the idea. He really didn't want to deal with Rita Skeeter, but Harry had made a deal. Probably best to get it over with. He glanced at his watch before moving to the kitchen to make tea. Rita would be there any moment.

There was a knock at the door and Harry moved to answer it. He waved Ron and Rita inside. "I was beginning to wonder if you planned to keep our bargain," Rita commented.

"We appreciate your patience," Harry said calmly, knowing perfectly well that Rita wasn't patient. "Please have a seat."

Rita sat down on one of the chairs, eyeing Harry skeptically. "And where is Mr. Malfoy?"

"I believe he was preparing tea," Harry said lightly. "One moment." He slipped out of the room silently.

Rita shifted uncomfortably. Ron's smug look was making her very tense.

Harry returned a moment later, levitating a tray of tea things. Draco followed him, carrying a bundle of pale green blankets. He was also holding a bottle of milk.

Rita stood up, her eyes wide with shock. She approached Draco slowly, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible. She spotted the dark hair first. And then the baby's eyes opened and she could see the bluish gray of his irises as he continued to drink from the bottle. "A perfectly beautiful baby," she noted, her voice hushed in her amazement.

"His name is James, after Harry's father," Draco informed her.

"So... this child is, in fact, from both of you?" Rita asked.

"The potion did more than give us wings," Draco murmured. "One of the changes made it so that I could conceive... I produced an egg. It hatched last week."

"Last week," Rita repeated thoughtfully, giving Draco a questioning look.

"Yes, that was the day the men at fault were arrested," Draco said. "But not before they attacked our home. Harry and I were keeping them away from the egg and Harry was nearly killed."

Rita stared at the baby. "Does he have wings as well?" she asked.

Draco carefully pulled the bottle away and handed it to Rita. He shifted James to rest upright against his shoulder before carefully removing the blanket. James had little wings that were now covered in fluffy down feathers protruding from openings in his little green shirt. They didn't look particularly useful, but Harry and Draco adored the sight of them.

Rita was a bit overwhelmed. Of all the things that she could have guessed, a baby had never entered her thoughts. Even with Harry's restrictions, the story is going to be huge. She shook off her shock and pulled a quill and notepad from her handbag, handing the bottle back to Draco. "What is it that you'd like to say?" she asked, looking between Harry and Draco.

Harry smiled and began pouring cups of tea. This had been a very good idea.

HPDM~HPDM

It was a few days after the interview that Ron was finally able to say what had been discovered about their case. The interrogations had been extensive.

Grant had a brother that had been killed by a veela. But it had been revenge for the man brutally raping the veela's half-veela daughter. Grant had been furious over the Ministry's lack of sympathy over his brother's death. So, he'd gathered some men that shared his disgust with the Ministry. They'd decided that they needed more power to gain control of the ministry and the Veela population. If they could change themselves to have an advantage, they'd have an easier time of it.

And so the plot to become hybrids was born. They wanted to harness the abilities of a veela with the powers of a wizard. The experiments with potions had been mostly unsuccessful until they'd begun using a very dark ritual to bind the essence of two beings together. But the veela blood didn't mix properly with wizard blood outside of normal conception. They were left to try something else.

Birds. Surely birds were close enough. All of their test subjects had died apart from Harry and Draco. They needed to know what was different about them, but it was difficult to get to them. That led to Grant attempting to poison them. They didn't dare to take the potion themselves until they knew they wouldn't be mutilated horribly by the transformation, like all their other victims.

"We nearly died multiple times just because they're stupid?" Draco demanded in an angry hiss.

"That's pretty much how it always is," Harry commented with a roll of his eyes.

Ron shrugged helplessly. "Sorry mate," Ron said. "People who are completely mental tend to do things that are completely mental. The Ministry sided with the Veela after Grant's brother died, but Grant insists that his brother was under the veela's influence."

"So Grant kills a bunch of people to get back at them? Nutter," Draco scoffed.

Harry shook his head, gently rocking James in his arms. "At least it's over," he said quietly. "Now we can all move on." He looked up when an owl tapped at the kitchen window.

Draco moved to open the window, huffing in annoyance when the owl landed on the counter top and tried to preen Harry's feathers. "That's my husband you feathery git," Draco grumbled. "Do your job and get out of here."

The owl gave Draco a reproachful look, making Harry laugh. Harry took the newspaper from the people and slid the money into the pouch on the owl's foot. The owl flew off, leaving Draco scowling at the window.

"It's just an owl Draco," Harry chuckled while Ron snorted into his teacup.

Draco gave a dignified little sniff and unrolled the paper. There on the from page was a picture of Draco and Harry with James. Their wings were spread dramatically while James was gently cuddled in Harry's arms.

They read through the article, quite pleased with Rita's work. Per their agreement, Rita didn't stay from the information Harry provided. The marriage of Harry and Draco, the birth of James and a brief overview of why they'd been in hiding was printed for the Wizarding World to see. Included at the end was a request for fans and media to respect the privacy of the new family. Harry hadn't requested that part, but he was grateful to Rita for including it. Though, he doubted people would cooperate.

"So now people know," Draco said with a little sigh. "We'll be able to leave the house some now. Though I don't care to take James out in public yet."

Harry nodded his agreement. He set aside the newspaper and smiled. "Maybe you'd like to fly with me for a bit," he said. He'd been forced to limit his activity after his injury, but he was fully healed now and eager to stretch his wings.

"I'll hold James," Ron said eagerly, holding his hands out. "You two should fly for a bit."

Draco grinned as Harry passed James to Ron. "Come on then," Draco said, grabbing Harry's hand and heading for the back door. Ron followed them out, kissing the baby's soft cheek as he went.

Draco leapt into the air, flapping his wings hard. He laughed as he rose watching Harry follow him into the sky. They circled each other, laughing joyfully and clasping their hands together. Unable to restrain himself, Draco pulled Harry into a kiss. Their wings flapped hard, keeping them up as their tongues tangled together.

"I love you Harry," Draco murmured against Harry's lips.

"I love you too," Harry replied. "So much."

Below them, Ron grinned and shook his head. "James, what are we going to do with your daddies?" he asked, smiling as the baby blinked up at him. "You're going to end up with as many siblings as I have unless those two can figure out how to keep their hands off each other."

HPDM~HPDM

Harry and Draco didn't return to the aurors. After all that had happened, they were content to set that part of their lives behind. Their son was precious to them and they didn't want to miss a moment him.

When James was a year old, they welcomed a second son to the family. Little Scorpius had Harry's green eyes but Draco's fair compexion and blond hair.

Harry smiled as he watched James and Scorpius chased their Uncle Ron across the dance floor. Neville and Hermione had gotten married that day and even the little ones were enjoying the reception. Scorpius was flapping his silvery wings ineffectively, his chubby legs not doing a good job of keeping up with his brother. Ron took pity on him and scooped the two-year old up while James laughed and asked to be picked up as well.

"He's so good with them," Pansy said, waddling up to Harry. Her stomach was full and round with her first child. Ron was very excited about becoming a father.

"He'll be great," Harry assured her, glancing past her to see Draco approaching with a glass of champagne for Harry and a plate of hors d'oeuvres. Sometimes it still amazed Harry how angelic Draco looked with his gorgeous white wings spread out behind him. Draco was beautiful and Harry was even more smitten than he was on the day of their wedding.

"Here you go Love," Draco said, kissing Harry sweetly and handing him the champagne. "You're looking ridiculously sexy in those dress robes. I'm looking forward to taking them off of you."

"Is that so?" Harry grinned, ignoring Pansy's eyeroll.

"Of course," Draco smirked. "I happen to know for a fact that you taste even better than you look."

Pansy rolled her eyes. "Salazar," she groaned. "No wonder Draco keeps falling pregnant."

"Two pregnancies are hardly shocking," Harry remarked rolling his eyes. He froze when Pansy looked away and Draco cleared his throat softly. "Draco? Are you...?

Draco blushed and bit into a strawberry without comment.

"You- You told Pansy before me?" Harry asked, sounding hurt.

"I only found out for sure this morning," Draco said quietly. "I was going to suprise you tonight after we put the boys to bed. It's Hermione and Neville's day after all. I didn't expect this cow to blurt it out," he said, shooting Pansy a glare. She gave him a dirty look in return.

Harry stood silent, absorbing the new information. He wasn't expecting this. They hadn't really discussed having another child yet. Scorpius was only two.

"Harry?" Draco asked apprehensively, his eyes starting to fill. "Are you not happy?"

Harry blinked, focusing on his suddenly tearful spouse. "Draco, of course I'm happy," he said with a tender smile. He pulled Draco close, knowing that the blond wouldn't be able to keep it together. Sure enough, he could feel his neck growing damp with Draco's tears. "I'm sorry darling. I was just surprised. Don't cry."

Draco slowly relaxed in Harry's arms but not before catching the attention of the bride and groom. "What's wrong? What happened?" Hermione asked anxiously. She was still in her wedding gown with her hair pinned up elegantly. She looked like a princess and Draco felt awful for causing a scene at her wedding.

"Draco's pregnant!" Pansy blurted out excitedly.

"Oh my god!" Draco wailed, burying his face against Harry's shoulder again. "Stupid cow!" he cried, though his voice was muffled by Harry's robes.

Harry bit his lip hard. It would be a really unfortunate time to laugh at his hormonal husband. To his amusement, Hermione squealed in excitement. She pried Draco off of Harry and hugged him fiercely. "That's wonderful!" she exclaimed. "Why are you so upset?"

Draco struggled to compose himself. He'd been an emotional wreck with Scorpius too. Stupid hormones. It was rather lucky that the pregnancy portion of this was rather short. Then he just had to deal with being a complete lunatic over a giant egg for five to six months. The joys of parenthood.

"I'm so sorry," Draco sniffled, mortified that he'd caused such a fuss. Most of the wedding guests were now looking curiously at him.

"Don't be silly," Hermione chided gently. "What do you have to be sorry for?"

Draco gave her an impatient look. "No bride wants to be upstaged by the pregnant bloke that can't seem to stop crying like a moron."

"Oddly specific problem to have," Pansy muttered. Harry glasses at her.

Hermione giggled, hugging Draco again. "Draco Malfoy-Potter," she said, knowing that he adored the name, "we love you. And we love Harry and the boys. I'm so excited for you. You've only made today even better."

"Of course," Neville agreed solemnly. Then he smiked. "As long as you weren't getting pregnant at the wedding, it's fine."

"It's fine Draco," Hermione insisted. "I'm so happy. I get to be your healer still, right?" she asked with a grin.

"As if I'd tolerate anyone else," Draco responded, finally offering a little smile.

Harry pulled Draco into a hug. "I'm so excited," Harry said, pressing little kisses all over Draco's face.

"Maybe it'll be a girl," Draco said hopefully. He knew that Harry had wanted a daughter.

"If it's not, than I'll still be perfectly happy," Harry said softly. "This baby will be just as loved as James and Scorpius, regardless."

"It's definitely a girl though," Luna said, startling a chirp out of Draco with her sudden appearance. He could have sworn that she'd been on the other side of the tent.

"Well, there you go," Pansy said with a nod. "You're having a girl."

"It's a little early," Draco said hesitantly.

"Luna has never been wrong," Neville reminded. "She was right about Scorpius. She was right about Rose," he added, nodding to wear Molly was holding Blaise and Ginny's new baby.

"She said that I was having a boy," Pansy told them, "and Hermione confirmed it yesterday."

"I can list several other pregnancies where she predicted the gender," Hermione said. "It's ridiculous, but she's right every time. If she says you're having a girl, then we better be prepared for the birth of a little princess."

Harry laughed, hugging Draco happily. Draco looked at Luna eagerly. "You're certain it's a girl?" he asked.

"Completely," Luna assured him somberly. "The wrackspurts always know."

Draco couldn't think of a good response to that statement. He could see Pansy's lips trembling as she attempted to resist laughing. Hermione was squinting at Luna a bit suspiciously.

"Thank you," Draco said, hugging Luna briefly. Questioning it was pointless. And Draco was honestly delighted. He turned to Harry with a smile. "We're having a girl!" he cried out joyfully, laughing when Harry let out an excited trill.

The sound of little chirps drew the couple's attention. James and Scorpius had run over, curious about the commotion. "Papa!" Scorpius cheeped, bouncing in place and prompting Harry to pick him up. Draco scooped James up and held the little boy propped on one hip, avoiding his stomach. Harry thought he noticed a very slight roundness to Draco's stomach. How had he missed that before?

"How would you two like to have a baby sister?" Draco asked, looking between his precious sons.

James cheered and clapped his hands, but Scorpius looked a little perplexed. "Do you like baby Rose, Scorp?" Harry asked. He smiled when Scorpius nodded. "Well, we will have a new baby too!"

Scorpius smiled widely, looking even more like Draco. "I can help?" he asked.

"Of course," Harry nodded. "You'll be a good big brother, just like James."

"I love James," Scorpius announced.

"Daddy crying again," James muttered, reaching out to brush away the lone tear the was making it's way down Draco's cheek. "You okay Daddy?"

"I'm alright darling," Draco said with a watery laugh. "I just have the sweetest little boys on the world." More tears threatened as James hugged Draco's neck.

"Alright, I'm in need of a new dance partner," Hermione said, offering Draco a sweet smile. "James would you dance with me?"

"Yes Auntie Mione," James agreed, pressing a quick kiss to Draco's cheek before he was placed back on the floor.

"Scorpius, will you dance with me?" Neville asked, holding his arms out for the little blond. He leaned close to Scorpius, as if to tell a secret, but he spoke loud enough for the others to hear. "I think your Papa really wants to kiss your Daddy right now."

"Ew," Scorpius pronounced, wrinkling his perfect little nose. Neville carried him off, shaking with mirth.

The Malfoy-Potters remained at the reception until the sky began to grow dark. James and Scorpius had cuddled up in their fathers' arms, unwilling to dance or socialize any longer. Their fuzzy wings drooped in their fatigue and the boys were cooing sleepily as they nuzzled against their parents.

At home, the boys were each placed in their own nest and covered up. Loving kisses were pressed to their foreheads and they fell asleep quickly.

Draco chirped in shock when Harry scooped him up and carried him to their bedroom. "And what do you think you're doing?" Draco asked teasingly.

Harry set Draco down and began removing the blond's clothing. "I'm going to shag you until you beg me to stop," he declared, lowering his head to suck a mark onto Draco's fair skin.

"You're going to be exhausted," Draco informed him, tilting his head to give Harry more room.

Harry grinned, shifting to kiss Draco deeply. Once he broke the kiss he finished undressing them and followed Draco into the nest.

Draco grew impatient with Harry's slow and careful preparation and soon climbed into Harry's lap. "Are you in a hurry?" Harry chuckled.

"Yes," Draco moaned, slowly sinking onto Harry's cock. "I just need you inside me." He rolled his hips, gasping as pleasure surged through him.

Harry closed his eyes. He loved seeing Draco like this. He reached down and rested his hand against Draco's abdomen, stroking his thumb over the slight swell. Draco made a sound like a choked sob and kissed Harry hard. Harry's other hand moved to guide Draco's movements.

Harry wrapped both arms around Draco and positioned him on his back. Draco gasped at suddenly having his wings pinned beneath him, but he moaned when Harry began thrusting into him, slow and deep. Harry's arms remained cradling Draco's neck and lower back. His tongue caressed Draco's languidly.

Draco came hard, arching his back and pressing himself closer to Harry. Harry followed after just a few more thrusts, having the presence of mind to roll them into their sides to avoid squashing Draco.

"Bloody hell," Draco panted, not bothering to untangle his arms and legs from Harry. "That was brilliant."

"You're welcome," Harry panted back with a tired grin.

"Smug bastard," Draco laughed. He snuggled close, not caring that they were both sweaty and had semen smeared on their torsos.

Harry cleaned them up as soon as he'd caught his breath. He instantly began gently stroking Draco's stomach again.

"Can I tell you something without you laughing at me?" Draco asked quietly.

"Possibly," Harry said with a smile, kissing Draco's forehead. "I think you're hilarious, so I can't make any promises."

Draco hesitated, biting his lower lip a bit shyly. "I sort of... enjoy being pregnant," he admitted, a light blush coloring his cheeks.

"Really?" Harry asked.

"I mean, the back pain is wretched and I have crying at the slightest provocation," Draco explained. "But, there's something about carrying our children, protecting and nourishing them inside my body... And you make the difficult parts of it easier for me. You get so cuddly and sweet."

"That's partly because I enjoy you being pregnant too," Harry admitted. "You're so beautiful with your belly so round and full. I haven't the slightest idea how you manage to still be so graceful. And the thought that you sacrifice your own comfort to make our babies healthy... Draco, I love you more than I can say," Harry said tenderly. "So cry when you need to. Complain about back pain or ask me to pick weird shit up when you have a craving. I cherish every moment of it."

Harry reached out and wiped away Draco's tears. Draco kissed him and cuddled into Harry's chest with a sigh of contentment. They had a baby girl on the way and two sweet little boys. And as long as they were together, they could face anything.


End file.
